I love the short season of juicy, sweet, crunchy snap peas. And radishes. And asparagus! When we’ve all come out of winter hibernation and the farmer’s market is full of new colors. I tend to go a little crazy and lose all sense of practicality when I see the first new produce of the season. Three baskets of strawberries? Sure. A pound of various spring onions and one very heavy bag of snap peas? Why not. French breakfast radishes? They’re so cute, I have to. I overbuy everything and reassure myself I’ll use every last bit. But alas, I have a 6-month-old baby and sometimes my ambitions get the best of me around dinnertime. Another night of breakfast tacos and the bountiful produce remains in the fridge. Although it’s worth mentioning we do load up our breakfast taco scrambles with swiss chard and every allium under the sun. I digress, point being: I overbuy produce and there inevitably comes a night when I look at what I need to use and make a mish-mash of a dinner. 

And this is how we ended up with Springtime Salad with Cilantro Citrus Dressing + Crispy Chicken Skin. A clean-out-the-fridge meal using produce that was on its last leg in our fridge. I tossed it in my citrus and cilantro dressing and it was an accidental *masterpiece*. I love it when that happens! Chiffonaded kale, thinly sliced sugar snap peas, radishes, and raw asparagus make up the base of this sweet and crunchy salad. Shredded rotisserie chicken makes it more of a main event. Toss it all in the dressing and let it sit for at least 30 minutes to marinate. Promise me you won’t skip this step! The salad just won’t be the same without it. Top it with the best quality, briny sheep’s milk feta you can get your hands on. Oh, and if you’re already using a rotisserie chicken, I highly recommend rendering the skin in a skillet for a shatteringly crisp topping.

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I won’t sugarcoat it, this isn’t the quickest recipe. You’re going to need to slice, toss, taste, adjust, crisp, repeat. But I would never tell you to make it if it wasn’t worth it. Usually, the recipes I share have more specific measurements, but this recipe is extremely forgiving and the rough recipe works every time. Don’t have any of the veggies or the chicken? Skip ‘em. The kale is fabulous with the dressing all by itself. Have some leftover cooked grains? Throw ‘em in there. Check out the Riffs section underneath the recipe for more simple swaps. Oh, and do yourself a favor and make the dressing at the beginning of the week when you have the energy. It’ll make the rest of the dish come together so easily.  

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