The Ontario strawberries are out, and I love the sweat and tartness of it all. So, I thought that a savoury first course or lunch would be a fresh and light addition to summer dining. We had friends over last night and made this colourful salad.
serves 4
Salad Ingredients
8 oz (226 g) of sugar snap peas
1 1/2 cups of sliced Ontario strawberries
1/2 cup Fresh Mint, chopped
1/4 cup of hazelnuts, roasted, skinned and chopped roughly (you can also substitute unsalted macadamia nuts if you wish)
1 cup of creme fraiche or sour cream
Dressing - USE VIVA TASTINGS HOUSE DRESSING
Method
Remove the stem and strings from the sugar snap peas.
Get ready a bowl of ice water for the blanching process,
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1 tsp of sea salt.
Drop the prepared snow peas into the boiling water and leave for 1 to 2 minutes maximum, drain and immediately plunge into the ice water. Leave until totally cooled down. Drain and wrap in a clean tea-towel and set aside.
Preheat oven to 375F to roast the nuts.
Remove the steams from the strawberries and slice - add to a large mixing bowl and set aside
Roast the nuts for approximately 5 minutes or until browned, If using hazelnuts, what until they are cool and rub off the skins. Roughly chop the nuts and set aside for the garnish.
Remove the snow peas from the tea-towel and cut into 1-inch pieces and add the bowl with the sliced strawberries.
Chop the mint and add half of it to the bowl with the other two ingredients.
Toss the ingredients in the bowl with a modest amount of Viva's House Dressing. TASTE and adjust with salt and pepper to enhance the flavour if needed.
Individually Assemble the Salad - spread 1/4 cup of creme fraiche or sour cream on each salad plate, then divide the salad evenly between the four plates topping the creme fraiche with the salad,
Garnish with the chopped mint and the chopped nuts and serve.
Chef Tip: Make your own creme fraiche
Combine 1 cup whipping cream and 2 tablespoons buttermilk in a glass container. Cover and let stand at room temperature (about 70°F) from 8 to 24 hours, or until very thick. Stir well before covering and refrigerate up to 10 days.