Easter is here and by this time, you probably have landed on your Easter menu, whether lunch, brunch, or dinner. But if you haven’t, this spring salad with lemon tofu makes a perfect side dish for your Easter table. This salad recipe is packed with seasonal vegetables and uses a zingy lemon coriander dressing.
Aside from the seasonal veggies, the best part of this salad is that it comes together quickly in 30-45 minutes and is an easy make-ahead Easter side dish. Substitute tofu for your choice of protein to make it more palatable.
The vegetables and lemon tofu are roasted in the oven while kale is massaged in lemon and olive oil, before being tossed over with other veggies in a tangy dressing. It is so easy and healthy (comprises over 10 vegetables) that you would want to make it occasionally throughout the season.
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Total Time: 45 Minutes
Difficulty Level: Easy
Yield: 4 Servings
Also Read: This Rainbow Salad Recipe Might be the Simplest and Most Flavorful Ever
Ingredients:
- 500 g cauliflower
- 250 g broccoli
- 100 g button mushrooms
- Handful of lettuce
- Handful of kale
- 1 carrot (cut julienne)
- 1 radish of choice (sliced or cut half-moon)
- 1 cucumber (sliced)
- 1 quarter of red cabbage (diced)
- 1 onion (thinly sliced)
- 3 garlic cloves (confit or raw)
- 7 tablespoons of lemon juice
- Handful of fresh coriander (chopped)
- A few mint leaves (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon of mustard
- 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions:
- Cut and Roast Vegetables and Tofu: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Chop the cauliflower and broccoli into bite-sized florets, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and put in the oven for 30 minutes. Break the tofu into crumbs and drizzle with oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and set aside for 15 minutes. Roast the tofu along with the vegetables for the remaining 15 minutes
- Cook Mushrooms and Massage Kale: While the vegetables are roasting, cut and cook mushrooms on low heat with or without oil. Chop the kale and massage it with a tablespoon of olive oil and lemon juice
- Slice the Remaining Vegetables: While things cook, thinly slice the cucumber and radish using a mandolin slicer. Cut the carrot into julienne strips. Slice the onion into thin slices and soak in the water until the final step to soften the flavor. Chop the lettuce leaves into bite-sized pieces as well
- Make the Dressing: By this time, everything should be cooked. Take the vegetables and tofu out of the oven and set aside to cool down. Put the coriander, mint, garlic, oil, mustard, salt, pepper, and lemon juice into a blender and blintz. You can adjust the consistency by adding water
- Toss Together and Serve: Toss everything together in a big bowl and serve. If you are preparing the spring salad with lemon tofu ahead of Easter, make sure to put the liquids at the bottom of the airtight storage container and keep it in the fridge to maintain the crunch of the vegetables
Note: This recipe includes ingredient quantity for two people. If serving more, you can increase the quantity.
And there you have a colorful, flavorful, and nutrition-packed vegan spring salad for Easter that will become an instant favorite. You can add toasted seeds for a bit of extra crunch in this recipe.
Let me know in the comments if you give this recipe a try. Happy Cooking!
