Once you have savored these fresh, ripe berries for breakfast, in a pie, and in a bowl covered with cream, you’ll start looking around for other ways to use them. Might I suggest this simple, yet beautiful, spring salad? This salad features all four of my favorite flavor components: something sweet (juicy strawberries), salty (fresh feta), crunchy (toasted almonds), and refreshing (cucumbers). Add one more element of “something unexpected” and you have a salad that really sings. Here, the surprise is the peppery explosion of watercress and radishes and some lively mint. (You could use either mint or basil, or both, depending on what you can find—they add a nice punch to the salad.) If you are lucky enough to find young watercress with thin, tender stems, you will not need to do anything except rinse and shake off the moisture. For bunches with thicker, tougher stems, just remove the bottom thick ends, and keep the leaves on their upper stems. And let’s not leave out the visuals. Serve this stunning tangle of spring ingredients all by itself on salad plates so you can really show off its beauty. It’s almost too pretty to eat! But of course, you should. The almonds can be toasted up to a day ahead of time, but wait to assemble the salad until just before serving. If you can only find standard cucumbers, cut the cucumber in half and scoop out the seeds in the middle before slicing. Recipe can be doubled or tripled if needed.
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
Kosher salt and freshly grated black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
For the salad:
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1 bunch watercress, any thick stems removed (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup packed mint or basil leaves, or a combination of both, roughly chopped
16 ripe strawberries, hulled and halved lengthwise
6 radishes, thinly sliced
1 Persian or English cucumber, thinly sliced
1/2 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta
Top with crumbled feta and toasted almonds, and serve.
