Spring Vegetable Salad with Artichokes & Prosciutto

Posted On March 12, 2019

 

YAY! Spring is around the corner! And your cities Farmers Market is THE best place to find the freshest vegetables your heart desires. Make sure to get there early so you have first pick. I know, not everyone has a Farmers Market nearby so check your local grocer for their fresh produce. 

This wonderful and healthy dish is easy to make and soooo good! And it looks pretty, right? Feel free to change the vegetables with anything you like but I recommend to add the prosciutto. You can also try smoked salmon as an alternative. Just as yummy! Oh, and this lovely dish is also great to bring to a small gathering. Plenty to share!

Total time: 1 hour; Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1 lbs. asparagus (not to thin)
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 14 oz. can or jar artichokes (can or jar sizes may vary)
• 1 medium size zucchini
• 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled, sliced in quarters
• 4 radishes, sliced
• 1 large tomato, sliced in wedges
• 1 tbsp. chives, chopped
• 8 thin slices of prosciutto
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan

Dressing:

• 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp. cracked pepper
• 1/2 lemon, squeezed
• 1 1/2 tsp. Herbes de Provence

Before we start, I would like to share one of the kitchen tips I learned a while back and which you can also find under my Everything Else tab. When you are cooking with certain vegetables like the asparagus for this dish, you want to keep them crisp. So we will take the asparagus, clean them and cut the bottoms, about 1/2 inch. Use a storage container the length of the asparagus, place them in the dish and fill with half of cold water and ice cubes. Make sure the ice covers all the asparagus. Set aside.

Let’s grab a large pot or deep skillet, fill with water about half way and add the 1 tbsp. salt, unsalted butter and 1/2 lemon. Bring to a boil. While the water is getting to its peak, we will drain the artichokes (if they are whole, please cut them in half). Clean the zucchini and peel off thin strips with a vegetable peeler.

The water for the asparagus should be boiling now, drain the asparagus from the ice water, add them to the boiling water and turn down to a simmer for about 8-10 minutes.

For the dressing I will use a small bowl and add the extra-virgin olive oil, the 1/2 squeezed lemon, herbes de provence and the cracked pepper. (I use mixed peppercorns in my pepper grinder for a more stronger flavor). Mix well and set aside.

Drain the asparagus and cut each stem in half. Place asparagus in a circle on a serving platter, add the zucchini strips, eggs, tomato, radishes and artichokes. Pour the dressing lightly over the vegetables and let sit for 15 minutes. Take the prosciutto, roll loosely and and lay on the vegetables. Sprinkle with the chives and parmesan. If you like you can serve with a crispy baguette. This is soooo good, you will make it again. Bon Appetit!