Tasty Thursday, Microgreens Style!

Tasty Thursday's have been on hiatus for the last little while, but now they're back! This week we'd like to highlight Microgreens: A Guide to Growing Nutrient-Packed Greens because it is such a great teaching tool. And, as a bonus, it has several recipes from restaurant chefs that love to include the tiny greens as part of their edible masterpieces. So with that, try this delicious recipe:

Microgreen Spring Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

2 tablespoons salt

1 cup peas, blanched

1/2 cup fava beans, blanched

4 carrots, small diced, blanched

1 handful pea shoot microgreens

1 handful Tokyo Bekana microgreens

1 handful red pac choi microgreens

1 pinch amaranth microgreens

4 radishes, sliced into thin coins

Salt and pepper to taste

Carrot Ginger Dressing

1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into coins

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare an ice water bath by filling a large bowl halfway with water and put about 2 dozen ice cubes in it; set aside.

2. Bring a gallon of water to a boil in a large pot. Add salt, , and then blanch the peas until they're bright green and tender, about 3 minutes. Immediately remove from the boiling water with a slotted spoon and place in ice water bath to cool for 2 minutes. Remove from water bath and set aside. Repeat the blanching process with the fava beans and carrots. 

4. Place the microgreens, radishes, peas, fava beans, and all but 1/2 cup carrots in a bowl and season lightly with salt and pepper; reserve 1/2 cup carrots for dressing.

To make the dressing:

1. Fill a small pot with cold water. Add the ginger and bring to a rapid boil. Strain out the water and repeat two more times. 

2. Place the ginger, 1/2 cup reserved carrots, rice wine vinegar, and water in a blender and blend until smooth. Remove from the blender and place in a bowl. Whisk in the the soy sauce and mayonnaise. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary.

To plate, gently toss the salad with just enough dressing to lightly coat the greens and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle some dressing on a platter and place the salad on top. 

Serves 4