Spring Salad with Fava Beans, Asparagus, and Violas
Author: 
Recipe type: salad
Cuisine: American
 
Ingredients
For the salad:
  • 1# unshelled fava beans (5 oz. shelled)
  • 20 oz asparagus (2 bu.)
  • 6 oz. lettuce or salad greens, washed
  • 7 oz. yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
  • about a dozen viola flowers, washed
  • about a dozen chive flowers, washed
For the dressing:
  • 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp. champagne vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic, chopped
  • small piece of shallot, chopped
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
For the dressing:
  1. Chop garlic and shallot, add to other ingredients.
  2. If you have time to let the dressing set for a few hours the garlic and shallot will infuse the oil with their flavor. If you don't have time, the dressing will still be good.
  3. Whisk dressing to combine the oil and vinegar just before adding to salad.
For the salad:
  1. I used a vegetable steamer basket inserted into a larger pot filled with a few inches of water for the fava beans.
  2. Shell fava beans, steam for several minutes until tender. Let cool. Slip membrane off of each bean.
  3. A steamer basket can also work for the asparagus (or grilling or broiling). I happen to have a tall, thin asparagus steamer pot and used that.
  4. Steam asparagus until tender but still firm, about 7 minutes for thick stalks and 4-5 for thin stalks.
  5. Cool, chop into segments.
  6. Put favas and asparagus into a medium bowl.
  7. Cut cherry tomatoes in halves.
  8. Wash, spin, shred lettuce (if not using prepared salad greens).
To assemble:
  1. Add a little salad dressing to the bowl of favas and asparagus and mix.
  2. Put the salad greens in a large bowl and toss with the remainder of the salad dressing.
  3. Arrange the salad greens on dinner plates.
  4. Top with the asparagus and favas, the cherry tomatoes, and finally the viola and chive flowers.
Recipe by Fit and Fed at http://fitandfed.net/2015/07/18/spring-salad-with-fava-beans-asparagus-chive-and-viola-flowers/