Strawberry, Cucumber and Radish Salad with Pea Shoots

I‘m smack dab in the middle of my five-in-five entertaining stretch of summer but I had to pause the kitchen play and open up the laptop to bring you this vibrant, seasonal salad.

It features everything that is flawless in Nova Scotia markets right now: fresh sugar snap peas, cherry red radishes, new cucumbers and ruby strawberries. I’ve even worked in wild rose petals, because they currently line the neighbourhood lanes, parks and walkways and I can’t resist bringing them to the table.

Alongside this salad recipe, you’ll also find a little more picnic inspiration because the Summer of the Picnic continues. This time I teamed up with my friend Kelly for a whimsical picnic on our lakeside dock. Read on to join in on the fun.

Welcome to my favourite corner of our little one-acre homestead just outside of Halifax. On this (salvaged, and rather beat-up) dock, we take our morning coffee and stretch out for afternoon naps.

The kids dangle their feet off the edge and drop crumbs from their dinner for the friendly Mallard ducks. And occasionally, I serve up sunset picnics straight out of a leopard print-lined wicker basket.

I’ll be giving all the details to our evening picnic very soon in an upcoming post, including that vibrant strawberry-limeade, the pretty little strawberry buttermilk layer cake, and the herbed butter with edible flowers….but for now, allow me to introduce the prettiest salad that ever was.

Served up in Weck jars, this Strawberry, Cucumber and Radish Salad with Garden Peas also features pea tendrils and wild rose petals. It was inspired by a recipe from Diana Henry’s cookbook Simple – my favourite work of hers for obvious reasons.

My cookbook club picked Diana for our featured author this summer and we’ll gather at the end of August to share our favourite recipes from her cookbooks. I’ve got a few of her titles currently in rotation, but I absolutely adore the salads in Simple and had to share my variation of this dish.

Diana uses cherries instead of strawberries, but I wanted to keep all of the ingredients Nova Scotian. I was able to source everything locally, even the fresh tarragon which I snipped from my small but valiant herb garden. That creamy tarragon vinaigrette is fragrant and delicate, perfect for bathing these equally delicate early summer fruits and vegetables.

Prepped in jars, this salad could be made a few hours in advance and easily transported to a picnic site. I love the 1/2 liter Weck Mold jars for a salad of this size; they’re perfect for personal salads and showcase all the pretty ingredients to boot.

Whether you’re enjoying this salad from your desk next week or packing it up in a basket for your next picnic excursion, I think you’ll love the bright flavours, crisp textures and vibrant colours of this Strawberry, Cucumber and Radish Salad with Pea Shoots.

Strawberry, Cucumber and Radish Salad with Pea Shoots

5 from 1 vote
Print Pin Rate
Course: Salads
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Gluten-free, Vegetarian
Essential Ingredient: Strawberries
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 231kcal
Author: Aimee Bourque

Ingredients

For the Dressing

  • 3/4 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons heavy cream
  • 7 sprigs tarragon just the leaves, chopped
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar or to taste

For the Salad

  • 4 mini cucumbers or 1/2 large cucumber
  • 1 1/2 cups strawberries
  • 5 1/2 oz radishes trimmed and finely sliced
  • 1/2 cup sugar snap peas
  • 1 1/2 oz pea shoots
  • 1 handful rose petals or other edible flower petals

Instructions

  • To make the dressing, mix the vinegar, mustard and seasoning in a small bowl. Whisk in the oil and cream with 1 tablespoon of water. Add the tarragon and sugar. Mix and taste; adjust the seasoning if desired.
  • Slice cucumber into ribbons using a vegetable peeler or a mandoline. Hull the strawberries, and slice into 1/2-inch thick pieces.
  • Put the cucumber, radishes, sugar snap peas and pea shoots into a broad shallow serving bowl and toss together with three-quarters of the dressing. Add the strawberries and drizzle with the remaining dressing.
  • Layer ingredients into a jar. Sprinkle with rose petals and serve at once.

Notes

If you wish to make this salad ahead of time, do not toss with the dressing. Keep it separate until just before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 231kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 38mg | Potassium: 357mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 435IU | Vitamin C: 55mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 2mg

All images created in partnership with my fellow foodie friend, Kelly of Kelly Neil Photography. Recipe & Food Styling by myself; Photography by Kelly. 

 

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3 Comments

  1. I’ve always loved all the fresh seasonal produce in NS, so much so that I’ve started growing sugar snap peas in the UK to remind me of what I used to eat back home! Such gorgeous-looking photos too, makes me want to dig in right away. Diana Henry writes such lovely books and recipes, I still swear by her ‘Bird in the Hand’ chicken book and her ‘How to Eat a Peach’. She also has a new one out in September!

  2. what a beautiful spread! wow, yes very inspirational and nice salad too, like the pairing of strawberries AND radishes, different tastes, at least for me, thank you

  3. This sounds like something fancy I’d see on a restaurant menu. And it looks even more fancy and delicious. I love the presentation how you rolled the cucumbers and left the peas in half the pod. Just gorgeous and the flavor combo is something I never would have thought of but can’t wait to try! Pinning now.