Bright Spring Salad

I'll be making this spring salad recipe all season long! Simple, bright, and delicious, it's the perfect way to showcase the season's best produce.

Spring salad

When the weather warms up in the spring, there’s nothing I crave more than this spring salad. Light, bright, and packed with spring’s best produce, it’s a perfect example of why eating seasonally is so exciting. This spring salad recipe is almost entirely veggies, but because each one is at its snappiest, sweetest, or softest right now, you don’t have to do much to turn them into a tasty dish. Toss them with a zesty dressing, sprinkle on a little cheese, and add a handful of nuts for crunch. With just a few minutes of effort, you’ll have made a spring salad that’s bursting with texture and flavor. It’s so simple and delicious, and I think you’re going to love it.

Asparagus

Spring Salad Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this spring salad recipe:

  • Asparagus – I blanch it until it’s crisp-tender but still bright green.
  • Peas – Their sweet flavor is delicious in this spring green salad! I almost always use thawed frozen peas, but blanched fresh peas would be equally tasty.
  • Radishes – For crunch and a pop of pink! I like to use a mix of watermelon radishes and red radishes, but just one variety would work fine too.
  • Feta cheese – It adds delicious tangy flavor.
  • Toasted pistachios and roasted chickpeas – They add protein, nutty flavor, and crunch.
  • Avocado – A rich and creamy contrast to the crisp veggies and crunchy chickpeas.
  • Fresh herbs – Choose one or use a mix! I love to make this spring green salad with a blend of basil, mint, and chives.
  • Salad greens – Any tender spring greens would be good. Butterhead and red leaf lettuce, mesclun, and arugula are some of my favorites.
  • And a bright, herb-flecked dressing – I toss this zippy mix of lemon juice, white wine vinegar, olive oil, and basil with the asparagus and peas first. Then, I drizzle more dressing over the entire salad when I assemble it. Yum!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below.

Spring salad recipe dressing

Variations

A good salad recipe is always flexible, and this spring salad is no exception. Here are a few of my favorite ways to change it up:

  • Swap the cheese, or skip it. Use soft goat cheese or mini mozzarella balls instead of feta, or skip the cheese to make this asparagus salad vegan.
  • Mix up the veggies. Use whatever looks good at the farmers market or grocery store! If you can’t find radishes, shaved kohlrabi or Japanese turnips would be a great substitute. I also like to make this spring pea salad with blanched sugar snaps or green beans instead of the asparagus.
  • Try a different nut or seed. Toasted almonds, walnuts, or pepitas would be fantastic.
  • Switch the dressing. If you happen to have pesto on hand, it makes a delicious dressing for this spring salad! If your pesto is thick, thin it out with extra olive oil or lemon juice.
  • Make a spinach salad. If you can get your hands on tender baby spinach, this asparagus, pea, and radish salad is a perfect way to use it.
  • Add an extra pop of pink. Top the salad with a few pickled red onions.

Let me know what variations you try!

Spring salad recipe ingredients

Spring Salad Serving Suggestions

Thanks to the chickpeas, feta, and avocado, this spring salad recipe makes a light, satisfying meal on its own. Pair it with a slice of crusty bread, homemade focaccia, or avocado toast to make it heartier, and enjoy it for lunch!

This tasty salad is also one of my favorite spring side dishes. Serve it with a frittata for an easy dinner or brunch, with veggie burgers or portobello mushroom burgers for a spring cookout, or with slices of Margherita pizza for a fun homemade pizza night! It would also be delicious with any of these pasta recipes:

Spring Mix Salad

More Favorite Salad Recipes

If you love this spring salad recipe, try one of these fresh salads next:

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Bright Spring Salad

rate this recipe:
4.99 from 84 votes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Serves 4
This spring salad recipe is a perfect light meal or side dish. Filled with fresh veggies, herbs, and a zippy vinaigrette, it's simple, bright, and delicious.

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch asparagus, tender parts, chopped into 1-inch pieces
  • ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
  • A few handfuls salad greens
  • 2 radishes, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
  • ½ avocado, pitted and diced
  • ¼ cup chopped toasted pistachios
  • ½ cup roasted chickpeas
  • Fresh herbs, for garnish (basil, mint and/or chives)
  • Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Dressing

  • ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, or a mix of basil and mint leaves
  • 1 small garlic clove
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as desired
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and set a bowl of ice water nearby. Blanch the asparagus for about 1 minute, or until tender but still bright green. Transfer to the ice water for 1 minute, then drain. Allow the asparagus to dry and transfer it back to the bowl and add the peas.
  • Make the dressing: In a food processor, pulse together the basil, garlic, lemon juice and zest, vinegar, olive oil, and salt. Season to taste, adding more oil as desired.
  • Add half of the dressing to the bowl with the asparagus and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  • Assemble the salad. Arrange the salad greens on a platter, then layer the asparagus/pea mixture, the radishes, feta, avocado, pistachios, chickpeas, and herbs on top. Drizzle with the remaining dressing, season to taste with more salt and pepper, and serve.

79 comments

4.99 from 84 votes (67 ratings without comment)

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Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. Supriya Kutty
    11.05.2024

    5 stars
    I love how vibrant and full of seasonal ingredients it is. The combination of crisp greens, citrus, and avocado is not only packed with flavor but also so nourishing. I can already imagine how great this would taste with a light vinaigrette dressing. It would be fun to try adding some toasted nuts or seeds for a bit of crunch! This is the perfect recipe to welcome the warmer months. Thanks for sharing such a healthy and beautiful dish.

  2. Jane
    05.13.2024

    5 stars
    I love this salad so much. But is it just me who finds it problematic to do the dressing in the food processor? I only have a big Cuisinart and there aren’t enough ingredients for the blade to mix, even if I double it. I ended up using an immersion blender in a big jar. Any other suggestions?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      05.16.2024

      Hi Jane, next time you could grate or mince the garlic and leave out the basil and whisk or shake the dressing together in a jar.

      I find the KitchenAid 3.5 cup chopper to be an invaluable tool if you like to make a lot of small batch sauces or dressings.

  3. Jane
    05.09.2024

    What is one “bunch” of asparagus? One pound?

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      05.10.2024

      Hi Jane, yep, a pound of asparagus will work here!

  4. Carol Diamond
    04.20.2024

    I don’t have white wine vinegar. Can I use red wine vinegar?

  5. Lewis
    04.04.2024

    5 stars
    Refreshing and crisp, each bite is a symphony of nature’s bounty.

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      04.05.2024

      Hi Lewis, I’m so glad you loved the salad!

  6. Maxine
    06.06.2023

    5 stars
    This salad is really something special. I made this as written (with some extra olive oil in the dressing since my vinegar was incredibly sharp) and served it at a dinner party with some edible flowers scattered on top. Every single person called out how good it was. Thank you so much for this one!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      06.08.2023

      I’m so glad it was a hit!

  7. Rachael
    06.04.2023

    5 stars
    I switched it up a bit by forgoing the lettuce and roasting the asparagus with the chickpeas and some shelled edamame I had in the freezer.
    So delicious!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      06.06.2023

      I’m so glad you loved it! Sounds so delicious.

  8. Mary
    04.08.2023

    5 stars
    This was absolutely delicious!I swapped out pepitas for pistachios but followed everything else exactly. It was a huge hit and am making it again for Easter. So pretty and fresh!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.12.2023

      I’m so glad you loved it!

  9. Jenbas
    04.18.2022

    5 stars
    I made this for a large group at Easter. I added edamame like someone recommended, especially because I left out the chickpeas (i haven’t been super successfulwith roasting them). I also forgot the cheese, but it was delicious! I also blanched the asparagus, roasted the pistachios, and made the dressing before, saving some time the day of for other dishes.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.27.2022

      I’m so glad you enjoyed it and that it was easy to prepare!

  10. Kasey
    04.18.2022

    This salad was a HUGE hit at our Easter dinner! I made it just as the recipe states and it was perfect!!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.27.2022

      I’m so glad it was a hit!

  11. Gskis
    04.18.2022

    5 stars
    Delicious. Perfect for brunch-everyone loved it!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.27.2022

      I’m so glad to hear!

  12. Jaz
    10.28.2021

    5 stars
    Delicious! Loved it and keen to make again!

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.