Spring salad of broad beans, radish and goats cheese

This salad is a beautiful celebration of spring, with lots of lovely texture from the broad beans, crunch from the radishes and creaminess from the goats cheese. At school the children love to run out and find edible flowers like nasturtiums or borage to garnish their salads. And if the broad beans are particularly small or very young, we don’t both to double-pod them.

Fresh from the garden: lettuces, broad beans, radishes, marjoram, edible flowers

Recipe source: Melissa

Serves: 6 or 24 tastes

What to do:

1. Fill the saucepan with water & set to boil on high heat.
2. Pod the broad beans, discarding the outer shell into the compost and add beans to the boiling water. Fill a large bowl with cold water and have ready.
3. Boil the broad beans for 3 minutes, drain and then immediately refresh in the bowl of cold water. Drain again and double-pod by slipping the outer shell off into the compost. Reserve beans.
4. Wash the lettuce leaves really well and spin dry in sections, reserving in a large clean, dry bowl. Wash & dry the marjoram sprigs, picking the leaves and leaving whole.
5. Wash the flowers gently in a small bowl of cold water and reserve on a piece of paper towel until ready to use.
6. Scrub the radishes clean, wipe dry and using the mandoline or a peeler, carefully slice into thin discs.
7. For the dressing, measure the olive oil, red wine vinegar and honey and pour them into the jar. Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and then put the lid on & give the jar a good shake.
8. Drizzle the dressing around the large lettuce bowl and gently turn the leaves with your fingers.
9. Place the leaves in the serving bowls, then pour the broad beans, radish slices and snap peas into the bowl and mix to cover in the residual dressing. Then sprinkle over each bowl of leaves.
10. Break the goats cheese into small chunks with your fingers and divide over the salads with the marjoram leaves.
11. Finish by carefully placing the flowers on top of the bowls of salad. Serve immediately!

Notes: What does residual mean? Why do we use honey vinaigrette here instead of our usual lemony dressing? Can you name some edible flowers?