Day 70: a song of praise to springtime

I’ve named this entry so for two reasons: 1) this recipe is indeed a homage to spring, in colour and taste, and 2) in the recipe intro Nigella refers to it as “a paean to Springtime in edible form” and I want to make sure I never forget that word - paean. Until finding this recipe I had never heard of it. My brain may already be an oversaturated sponge, drenched with a lifetime of useless, information, but whenever possible, I like to expand on my knowledge and learn new things. The problem is that I am terrible at remembering words, so in the hopes of rectifying that issue on this occasion, I thought I’d name this entry as a forever reference.

I actually found this recipe while in the queue to enter the supermarket: I had already chosen the Speedy Seafood Supper and knew that this would bless the house with a nice bunch of tarragon, so I quickly searched for other recipes requiring it and Nigella’s Asparagus, Radish and New Potato popped up.

Nigella’s Asparagus, Radish and New Potato Salad

I like to follow the recipes from the book at all times. I find scrolling up and down on the phone whilst cooking to be quite a stressful task. It wasn’t until after 20 minutes of searching the indexes of several books that I went back online to check which book it was actually from, and then realised that this is in fact an online exclusive!

I could have quite happily hovered my head directly over the pan and got lost in the heady aromas of the anise-infused steam as the tarragon was tumbled into the freshly-hot new potatoes and asparagus, groaning pleasurably as I did so. And in fact, did. For several minutes.

Flavour musings

Nigella’s Asparagus, Radish and New Potato Salad is just the right burst of colour you want to be surrounded by in the kitchen at Springtime, or indeed anytime, to be frank: it’s the perfect combination of velvet-soft new potatoes, crunchy radishes, asparagus with bite, and an aromatic, herb-laden dressing. I replaced the buttermilk with mayonnaise, partly because I forgot to buy it and also because my husband would probably cease talking to me for a week if I served him buttermilk; like sour cream, the very notion turns his stomach. I was happy with this alteration, too: mayonnaise is the one condiment I couldn’t, and wouldn’t, live without. Although, I’d like it to be known that I do like buttermilk and sour cream.

This will be my last entry until after the Easter weekend. Whatever your beliefs, whatever your plans, I wish you and your loved ones health and happiness. I am certainly looking forward to our Easter Sunday: the twigs are decorated, the eggs are ready to be dyed and decorated (Pisanki) and the leg of lamb has been collected from the butcher and is waiting for its green herby rub. Next up is Nigella’s Herbed Leg of Lamb. See you next week!