This spring salad is filled with a mix of fresh herbs, tender peas and crunchy radishes tossed in a lemony yogurt dressing.
When the weather warms, there’s nothing I look forward to more than the arrival of the first fresh spring vegetables. Light, bright, and filled with some of spring’s best produce, this salad is a perfect example of the kind of salad I love to make around this time of year.
As the name suggests, this spring salad is filled with seasonal favorites like fresh herbs, peas and radishes. It's light and refreshing and perfect for the season.
What's in the salad?
The salad is made with blanched peas and sliced watermelon radishes which are tossed with crisp frisee lettuce leaves, topped with homemade gluten-free pita chips and drizzled with a yogurt lemon dressing.
It’s a wonderful salad for an easy lunch or dinner, with lots of lightness, crunch and a lemony, herby freshness.
How to make a frisee salad:
I use a bed of frisee lettuce as the base to which I add a generous amount of chives and mint. That’s topped with tender peas, paper thin slices of pink hued watermelon radishes and roughly broken chunks of toasted pita chips. These are the same chips from my Mediterranean Nachos just with a sprinkle of sumac instead of oregano.
The dressing couldn’t be easier either, just lemon juice, olive oil and a bit of yogurt. It’s that little bit of creaminess from the yogurt I find really brings the entire thing together, making the crisp textures and flavors of spring shine through in every bite.
Crisp, tangy, creamy and satisfying, this spring salad is all about freshness and crunch.
More Spring Salads:
Spring Salad with Peas and Radishes
This spring salad is filled with a mix of fresh herbs, tender peas and crunchy radishes tossed in a lemony yogurt dressing.
Ingredients
- ½ cup fresh or frozen petite peas
- 1 Tablespoon/15ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons/30ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon/15ml plain whole milk yogurt (I like sheep’s milk)
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 head of frisee lettuce
- 3 to 4 small watermelon radishes, thinly sliced
- ½ a small bunch fresh mint, stems removed and coarsely chopped or torn
- ¼ cup chopped chives
- 2 grain-free pita rounds broken into bite sized pieces and sprinkled with a pinch of sumac instead of oregano before baking.
- 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (optional)
Instructions
- Lightly blanch the peas in boiling salted water until just tender ( 2 to 3 minutes) and drain. Place into an ice water filled bowl to stop the cooking and retains color.
- In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, olive oil and yogurt, season with salt and pepper to taste.
- In a medium sized serving bowl, combine the frisee along with the radishes, peas, mint and parsley. Add dressing, and toss well to combine. Just before serving, add the pita chips broken into large pieces and feta if using and gently toss again. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 264Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 373mgCarbohydrates: 14gSugar: 7gProtein: 9g
Sylvie Shirazi is the recipe developer and food photographer behind Gourmande in the Kitchen. For the last 10 years she's been making eating more healthfully easy and accessible with gluten-free, grain-free, paleo and vegan recipes that are free from processed ingredients.
Christina @ Christina's Cucina says
Lovely salad! I have heard of fattoush, but never knew what it was. FYI: sumac is related to tree nuts and although most companies do not place warning labels on their spices, please be aware that sumac and pink pepper berries can give nut allergy sufferers an anaphylactic reaction (my daughter learned this the hard way)!
Sylvie says
Thank you for that very important tip!
cristina says
Wow, Sylvie. This salad is beautiful, fresh and just delicious looking. Luv the ingredients used and the crunchy bits of pita. Always a winner with feta! 😉
[email protected] says
This is gorgeous! I can't wait for our farmers market to open up this weekend to grab these lovely ingredients.
Audrey @ Unconventional Baker says
Fatoush used to be my favorite salad to order at my favorite middle eastern restaurant, until I had to go gluten-free. This looks absolutely amazing though -- definitely makes me think spring 🙂
The Food Hunter says
Those radishes...I need to find some!
Nutmeg Nanny says
What a beautiful looking salad! LOVE the addition of watermelon radishes....delicious!
Amanda Paa says
it's so nice to see spring flavors! it's sounds so light and refreshing. and i had to hop on over and read about your grain-free pita. i've been craving something crunchy like that since embarking on paleo eating for a health condition.
DessertForTwo says
I am obsessed with sumac! It's been too long since I've had fattoush!
Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness says
This salad is GORGEOUS, and I love how simple it is. Sometimes the simplest dressings, really make the salad! And with that yogurt, I bet it's all kinds of creamy! Pinned!
Julie Clark says
Wow, this is a pretty salad! I'm ready for summer and light salads for lunch and dinner. Thanks for sharing a new recipe!