I’m a huge fan of herbs, I love them in the garden, in cuisine, the way they look, how they taste, and their lovely fragrance. So when my friend Rose said she was bringing an herb salad for lunch when she came over to celebrate my birthday back in July, I got intrigued. I have never had an herb salad before and wasn’t sure what to expect. This salad was outstanding. It was refreshing, crunchy, juicy, packed with delicate herb flavor, with a hint of citrus dressing all topped with tangy feta cheese. Just delicious!

Fresh Herbs Salad with Radish, Cucumbers & Pickled Onions
makes 4-6 servings
adapted from New York Times Cooking Herb and Radish Salad with Feta and Walnuts   with a few modifications by Rose

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts
• 2 bunches small radishes, trimmed (about 15 radishes) thinly cut into rounds
• 3 Persian cucumbers, ends trimmed and finely cut into thin slices
• 3 tbsp sheep’s milk feta cheese, crumbled (preferably French feta)
• ½ cup chives cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 bunch)
• 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves and tender stems (about 1 bunch)
• 1 cup loosely packed dill fronds, stems removed (about 1 large bunch)
• 1 cup loosely packed mint leaves (about 1 small bunch)
• 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
• 1/4 cup pickled onions – Here is the link to the recipe. Make pickled onions at least a day ahead and keep in the refrigerator to use the next day in this herb salad.
• Lemon Walnut Oil Dressing   Ingredients:
  • Juice of 1 lemon – about 4 tbsp
  • 4 tbsp walnut oil
  • 2 tsp maple syrup
  • Salt and ground black pepper

Directions:

Make the dressing and set aside.

Place cut radish, cucumber, pickled onions, and walnuts in a bowl. Set aside until ready to serve.

Right before serving salad toss all the herbs together with a 1 tbsp of dressing. Let it sit for 5 minutes to allow the dressing to mellow the herbs.

Meanwhile, toss radish, cucumbers, walnuts, and pickled onions with 2 tbsp dressing.

Place the marinated herbs on top of vegetables.

Right before serving, add feta cheese and toss all ingredients together adding more dressing if needed.

Serve salad right away.