This Spring Salad is a dish that tells the story of the season through its most vibrant colours and textures. At this time of year, nature offers us extraordinary vegetables, not only for their flavour but also for their nutritional properties, perfect for creating complete, light, and satisfying dishes.

Rainbow chard, with its stems ranging from yellow to deep red, is not just visually striking: it is rich in vitamins (particularly A, C and K) and minerals such as magnesium and potassium. The leaves have a delicate texture and a slightly earthy flavour, while the crunchier stems allow you to play with different textures within the same ingredient, also helping to reduce food waste in the kitchen.

Snow peas, also knowns as Mangetout, are a typical spring vegetable and stand out for their sweetness and tender yet crunchy texture. High in fibre and vitamin C, they contribute to satiety and support intestinal health. They are also particularly versatile and pair easily with a wide range of ingredients.

Alongside them, asparagus completes the dish with its slightly bitter, more pronounced flavour, typical of spring vegetables, and is also known for its detoxifying properties.

This salad was created to make the most of these seasonal ingredients, presenting them in a form that goes beyond a classic salad: a dish where vegetables are the absolute stars, combined with proteins and healthy fats for a complete nutritional balance. Naturally gluten free, it is also perfect for people affected by type 1 diabetes, thanks to its fibre content, which helps moderate blood sugar response.

Spring Salad

2g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4-6 servings

• 400 g rainbow chard
• 400 g asparagus
• 300 g snow peas or mangetout
• 2 eggs
• 30 g peeled almonds
• 30 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
• 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 1 heaped tsp soy lecithin*
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

1. Wash the snow peas and cut them into pieces.
2. Separate the stems of the rainbow chard from the leaves.
3. Bring a pot of water to the boil, add salt, and cook the snow peas and chard stems for 8 minutes. Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon and plunge them into cold water, then drain.
   Trim the woody ends of the asparagus and cut the rest into pieces of the desired size. Pour a little oil into a pan, add a clove of garlic, then the asparagus, a pinch of salt, and a splash of water. Cover with a lid and cook until tender.
4. Add the sugar snap peas and chard stems to the asparagus in the pan and sauté for a few minutes to infuse the flavours.
5. Cut the chard leaves into strips and sauté them in a pan with a little oil. Transfer to a blender and add the almonds, Parmigiano, soy lecithin, extra virgin olive oil, a splash of water, salt and pepper. Blend until a smooth cream forms.
6. Boil the eggs until hard boiled, then peel them.
7. To assemble the salad: place the asparagus with snow peas and chard stems in a serving bowl, pour over the chard cream, and top with crumbled hard boiled eggs, seeds, a grind of pepper, salt if needed, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.