Summery Strawberry Salad

Internet.

Summery Strawberry Salad | lawandlentils

I made you the most summery salad to ever summer, no joke.

Summery Strawberry Salad | lawandlentils

And if you think I’m kidding, let me assure you– I am not. I’m not even done EATING this salad. But I just got so excited to share it with you from the first bite that I hopped right onto my laptop to shout this baby from the rooftops. (Why yes I DO have a life, why do you ask?)

It’s officially strawberry season here in DC, and that means two things: it’s ALSO rhubarb season, and it’s also nasturtium season. Everybody knows rhubarb and strawberry are BFFLs, but allow me to make a brief case for letting nasturtium play with strawberry too: in addition to being very visually appealing, nasturtium has a vegetal spiciness that pairs really beautifully with strawberry sweetness. Also, it’s a flower you can eat. And that is just delightful. Case closed.

Summery Strawberry Salad | lawandlentils
Yes I know these photos are all the same. But 1) I haven’t really worked out how to use the space/light in my new place to my full advantage (still), and 2) there are only so many angles from which you can really photograph a salad. (3: if you have suggestions, please do @ me, friends.)

Some days, like today, the sun is shining after seemingly endless rain, and you just have to pretend not to notice the swampy humidity and lean FULLY into summer. This is the salad for that. It just feels like summer. If you play your cards right, you can even get almost all of these things in your own garden. (Sidenote: if you have a garden that’s stellar enough to have all these things in it, please invite me over let’s be friends forever okay great.)

Summery Strawberry Salad

  • Arugula
  • Pea Shoots
  • Strawberries
  • Avocado
  • Nasturtium flowers
  • Pistachios
  • Mint leaves, torn
  • Dill, torn
  • Blood Orange Olive Oil (regular will also do just fine, if you don’t have friends who give you gifts that are painfully well-attuned to your weirdo personality and cooking habits)
  • Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
  • Honey

Combine first 8 ingredients in whatever ratio will best please your tummy. (I’m a grown-ass woman who just wrote the word “tummy” on the internet, on purpose. Whatever. Too late now.) (This is very false, it’s called a draft for a reason. But I’m my realest self with you, internet, so here we are.) Drizzle with olive oil and honey, and add a generous sprinkling of cracked pepper. Devour, preferably among friends and al fresco. With a fizzy something to drink. Maybe two.

Summery Strawberry Salad | lawandlentils
The pots whence the mint came (seriously friends, I can’t believe I haven’t killed every last one of those herbs yet. Where’s Billy Crystal hiding, I know he’s behind this miracle.)

Next month I’m testing out a new outlet for my cooking compulsion (I mean, habit)– can’t  wait to a) see if it’s not a complete disaster, and b) share it with you! In the meantime, eat all the salads (and then all the baked goods, because life is about balance), and enjoy the sunshine when you get the chance 🙂

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