Colorful Spring Salad

This salad started out as an intuitive creation made for Easter lunch and it turned out so delicious I felt guilty not sharing. Plus it is jam packed with crunchy, fresh Spring veggies and the right amount of plant-based proteins you really can’t go wrong. I made this salad to go as a side dish, split amongst four people, however, you could easily add some avocado or chickpeas on top to have as a meal too. This salad will probably become a staple item through the summer for our family. And this dressing will probably get tripled to keep on hand for more salads as the weather continues to warm up.
One thing to keep in mind with this recipe is to remember that I don’t encourage measuring and instead intuitive insight. However, to get you started, I’ve included what feel like approximate measurements of each ingredient. If something doesn’t taste right to you, play around with it until it suits your needs.  Remember time in the kitchen is supposed to be fun! 
Feel free to make it your own and don’t forget to tag @ambuwellness on Instagram or Facebook!

Ingredients 

• A few large handfuls of butter lettuce or 1 carton of Organic Girl Butter Lettuce
• ½ bunch asparagus, chopped 
• ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
• 2 radishes, thinly sliced or chopped 
• ½ cucumber, chopped 
• ½ cup shredded carrots 
• 1 tbsp hemp hearts 
• 1/8 cup fresh mint, chopped

Dressing

• ¼ fresh basil
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil or flaxseed oil
• Juice from 1/2 lemon 
• 2 small garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp water 
• Freshly ground pepper to taste 

Instructions 

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and set a bowl of ice water nearby. Blanch asparagus in pot of boiling water for 1 minute, until tender but still a bright green. Transfer to ice water for 1 minute, then drain. Set aside. 
• To make dressing:  Blend all dressing ingredients together in a high-speed blender or food processor until desired consistency has formed. Set aside. 
• Assemble salad in a large bowl started with butter lettuce.  Add remaining ingredients, spreading evenly in bowl: asparagus, green peas, radishes, cucumber, carrots, fresh mint, hemp hearts. 
• Drizzle with dressing and toss salad to coat evenly.  Enjoy!