Spring food makes me so happy, and my Roasted Asparagus Salad holds a surprising twist on a dressing… Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette! Where do I even start here? Blueberries and balsamic vinegar really zing this salad into another level, which I wasn’t even expecting!! I fell into this recipe sort of by mistake. You know when you buy all the good looking produce, then get to the point where it’s time to make something to eat, and you either get creative or you eat the entire pint of blueberries while the asparagus roasts on a lonely sheet pan and you call it a day? Snack on some cheese? Chomp a bite out of an orange pepper? Yeah, me too. Hold on though, because I think these flavors will really surprise you too! Most of the ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. If you don’t, go get them right now so you can take part in this healthy and invigorating Springtime Salad! Serendipity strikes again for this artist in the kitchen, playing chef. Also….BACON!!!! It’s the salty counterpart to all of the healthy goodness in here. You gotta.
If you can roast asparagus and get most of it onto your salad before snacking on all of it right out of the pan, you might hold secrets that I need to know about. I honestly can not get enough fresh asparagus right now. It’s so easy, and so fkng fresh! Toss with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then roast on a sheet pan (yes I’m using a square cake pan… it just doesn’t matter put it in the oven however you do it) at 400 degrees F for about 12-15 minutes. EASY!!!
Here is where the real magic happens with these blueberries for the zingy vinaigrette in a blender…it can’t get fresher than this. Are you as excited as I am about SPRING? Especially after the Covid bummer year we have all experienced, on varied levels. I want to taste the trees budding! I added some dried basil to this (I know, yawn if you live where winter happens and don’t have a garden going yet), and I even creamed it up with some Mango Kefir. Literally, it was what I had. You can use regular old plain yogurt, but it won’t be as special as mine then. (wink)
Roasted Asparagus Salad with Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette
- March 31, 2021
- 2
- 1 hr
- Print this
Ingredients
- SALAD
- 4-5 slices bacon, cooked, pat dry, crumbled
- 1 bunch of asparagus
- 1 head Romaine lettuce
- 1 orange pepper, cored and chopped
- 1 T extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- BLUEBERRY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 3 T Balsamic vinegar
- 1 T fresh lemon juice
- 1 T plus 1 tsp maple syrup (or honey, in a pinch)
- 2 T mango kefir (or just plain yogurt)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 T dried basil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Directions
- Step 1
- If doubling to feed 4 people, just double the salad ingredients.
- Step 2
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Step 3
- Wash and pat dry the asparagus spears. Bend each from the top of the spear until it breaks, then toss out the bottom part (itās tough and you wonāt want to eat it). Place tops in a roasting pan, toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper (foil and parchment paper optional) and roast for 10-15 minutes, or until the heads of the asparagus are turning brown.
- Step 4
- Wash, dry, and chop lettuce. Place in a mixing bowl with chopped peppers.
- Step 5
- Place all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette in a blender, except the olive oil. Once you pulse the crap out of the blueberries, then add olive oil one tablespoon at a time.
- Step 6
- Pour vinaigrette over salad, toss, top with roasted asparagus spears, bacon bits, a drizzle more of that vinaigrette, and serve with a big glass of SPRING!
Song for the Prep: Looks Like We Made It by Barry Manilow
And all I could taste was love the way we made it. Oooh yeah the way I made this salad force the trees to bloom blueberries all over the place. The bridge part in this song, with the orchestra…dayummmn. I’m a ridiculously insane fan of Barry. Not Berry. See what I did? Right. Ahem.