This salad screams “SPRING!” English peas, check. Sugar Snap Peas, got ’em. Asparagus, you betcha. Radishes, for sure. Mint, yup. The instructions for the recipe look long, but once you get the water boiling and the bowl of ice water set up, it comes together in a snap. Just be sure to blanch the asparagus last so that the water doesn’t take on the taste until the end.

I found the fresh English peas at Trader Joe’s. I don’t like frozen peas, but I loved these! I’m not sure how long they will be in stores, but get them while you can!

The end of the month is a week away so I want to take this opportunity to remind you about the April contest. To be eligible to win, you either need to leave a comment on every post in April beginning with the post from April 1st and continuing through the end of the month. And/Or you may also enter by following Harmony Boards on Instagram and getting 5 of your friends to follow. GO HERE for all the rules and details.

Several of you are playing along by leaving comments on these posts, thank you! But I have to let you know that a few of you need to go back and be sure you’ve posted on all the posts, right off the bat a couple of you missed commenting on the April 1 post, so if you’re playing, please double-check before the end of the month. I want you all to be eligible to be in the drawing! If you haven’t started playing, it’s not too late, please join in.

Asparagus, Radish, and Mixed Pea Salad with Mint and Hazelnuts

This light summer salad is so delicious and refreshing. An added bonus – no cooking or heating up the kitchen is involved!

One more thing … it’s pretty as a picture.

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Different fats and oils have different uses. Each performs best within a certain range of temperature. Some are made for high-heat cooking, while others have intense flavors that are best enjoyed only lightly heated or uncooked and straight from the bottle drizzled on food or used in vinaigrettes.

As with many Asian recipes, today’s calls for peanut oil. Especially in stir-fry, peanut oil is the fat of choice. It has a higher smoke point than many other oils and lends a light peanut flavor that complements so many Asian-inspired dishes. The smoke point of an oil or fat is the temperature at which it gives off smoke when heated.

Other important considerations are food allergies and the type of fat the oil contains; saturated, polyunsaturated, or monounsaturated. Here are the differences, straight from the American Heart Association.

“Saturated fat:  Saturated fat is the main dietary cause of high blood cholesterol. Saturated fat is found mostly in foods from animals and some plants. Foods from animals include beef, beef fat, veal, lamb, pork, lard, poultry fat, butter, cream, milk, cheeses, and other dairy products made from whole and 2 percent milk. All of these foods also contain dietary cholesterol. Foods from plants that contain saturated fat include coconut, coconut oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, and cocoa butter.

Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats: Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are the two unsaturated fats. They’re found in many fish, seeds, nuts, and oils from plants. Some examples of foods that contain these fats include salmon, trout, herring, avocados, olives, walnuts, and liquid vegetable oils such as soybean, corn, safflower, canola, olive, and sunflower.”
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I mentioned my fabulous neighbors yesterday.  I can’t begin to describe how blessed we are to live in such a wonderful community. Everyone here supports each other and we all come together throughout the year for bunco, progressive dinners, a fall or winter party, and the best Halloween trick-or-treating around!  The one thing I don’t think I’ve mentioned before is that I’m a Scottsdale,  Arizona native, a rare breed indeed! I’ve lived in the “Valley of the Sun” all my life and in this great neighborhood for the last 11 years.  I can’t begin to imagine not living here!  So a quick shout out to all the amazing women who are raising their families here too… including Amy, April, Cindi, Dana, Denise, Gail, Ginger, Jan, Jeanie, Joanie, Joanne, Kelly, Kirsten, Lisa, Lori, Marci, Mary Ann, Rainey, Robyne, Ronnie, Sarah, Susie, and Whitney… love you all!  And in your honor, here is another “Easy-Breezy” recipe, with the promise of “more to come”!
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