It’s time to get cooking with wild garlic people! Out walking with Little T the other day, I spotted the first signs of those delicious leaves popping up through the woodland ground and knew it was time to think up a delicious & healthy salad for the blog…so here it is. Wild garlic three ways! Large handfuls of the good stuff are whizzed up to make a beautiful wild garlic oil. The tiny tender leaves are left whole and tossed into the salad, whilst larger wild garlic leaves are very finely shredded to add extra allium-based goodness.
This one is a real celebration of spring. It’s packed with the aforementioned wild garlic but as well as that, there’s some seriously tasty crispy kale leaves that are still going strong on the allotment. A little roasted broccoli and some super vibrant spring greens finish things off nicely. Everything is zinged up with some charred lemons and tangy feta then tossed in a delicious (if I do say so myself) wild garlic oil. Oh and don’t forget the pine nuts, one of life’s finest treats.
Whilst this healthy salad is all about the wild garlic, let’s not overlook the crispy kale and roasted broccoli. Cavolo Nero is such a delicious kale variety and when tossed in olive oil, sprinkled with parmesan and quickly roasted, it makes for the crispiest, tastiest leaves ever. They’re essentially little kale chips and are worth making a big batch of just to snack on for a healthy treat. The roasted broccoli was an impromptu idea that I’d tried previously (right here) and adds a nice texture to the salad. To up the protein levels, I went big on the feta and the pine nuts. They make the salad feel much more substantial and indulgent.
I had the salad on it’s own as a main course, so it’s perfect if you’re looking for low carb lunch ideas, but you could easily have it as a side if you prefer. I’m sure it would go beautifully with some grilled salmon or chicken. Cooking with wild garlic is a real treat, so get yourself into the nearest woods and see if you can spot any of those delicious leaves popping up near you!
Serves 2 as a main / 4 as a side.
Ingredients Wild garlic oil 2 small handfuls of wild garlic leaves 4 tbsps olive oil 1.5 tbsps lemon juice Crispy Kale 12 large Cavolo Nero leaves 1 tbsp olive oil 20g parmesan Other ingredients 200g tenderstem broccoli 1 tbsp olive oil 1 lemon, cut into 1/2cm slices 240g spring greens, sliced 1 handful of wild garlic, large leaves finely sliced (1), smaller leaves reserved 100g feta 40g pine nuts, lightly toasted
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C or 360°F.
To make the wild garlic oil, blitz the wild garlic & olive oil in a processor, then squeeze in the lemon juice and season well.
For the crispy kale, toss the Cavolo Nero in oil and grate over Parmesan. Season, then roast for 10-12 minutes or until crisp.
Toss the broccoli in remaining olive oil, season and roast alongside the kale for 10-12 minutes. Meanwhile, In a hot non-stick pan cook the lemon slices for a couple of minutes each side until lightly charred but not burnt.
In a large pan of boiling water, cook the spring greens until tender and vibrant, then drain thoroughly. Once cooked, toss the spring greens, roasted broccoli and reserved garlic leaves in a large bowl with most of the wild garlic oil. Arrange the dressed veggies on a platter, alongside the crispy kale and lemon slices. Scatter with feta, pine nuts and sliced wild garlic leaves, then drizzle over remaining wild garlic oil. Spring on a plate.
Useful tips
Carefully stack the large leaves on top of each other, then roll them up into a long tube. Slice the tube as finely as you can into thin ribbons known as chiffonade. Watch this absolute boss show you how it’s done!
