With just a few simple ingredients, this salad is the prefect recipe for a busy weekday meal or an easy side for your weekend feasts. The asparagus is definitely the star in and all the other ingredients help to elevate its flavor. 

The romaine lettuce with its mild taste is the perfect base for this salad and the red onions add a sharp sweetness that compliments the asparagus. Instead of croutons, I used hazelnuts, which add a crunchy texture and a nutty flavor to the salad while keeping the salad low in carbohydrates. 

The tangy mustard and the sweet shallots combined make the perfect light dressing for this salad. Its flavor is very mild to avoid overpowering the asparagus. You can prepare the dressing in advance and keep it refrigerated until ready to use. You can serve this salad as is or you can top it with roasted chicken, shrimp or salmon for extra protein. 

Asparagus Romaine Salad with Hazelnuts

Course: Appetizers, LunchDifficulty: Easy

Servings

2-4

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

A simple salad that can be a quick weekday meal or a perfect side to any dish. 

Ingredients

• Salad

• 1 bunch of asparagus (~1 ½ -2 cups trimmed and cut into 2-inch spears) 

• 1 head of romaine lettuce, washed and chopped into 1-inch pieces

• 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

• 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts

• Salt to taste

• Dressing

• 1 tbsp finely chopped shallot

• 3 tsp deli mustard

• 1 ½ tsp white vinegar

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Bring 3-4 cups of water and a large pinch of salt to boil over high heat.
• Prepare the asparagus by trimming off the woody ends and cutting them into 2-2½ inch spears. 
• Add asparagus to the boiling water and cook until the asparagus is cooked (2-3 minutes for thin asparagus, 4-6 minutes for large asparagus).
• Transfer asparagus to a bowl filled with ice water. Once cooled, transfer to a colander to drain any excess liquid. Add additional salt to taste. 
• In a medium bowl, mix together the finely chopped shallot, mustard and vinegar. Drizzle in the olive oil while whisking vigorously. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Place the lettuce and onion in a large bowl, add the desired amount of dressing and mix to combine.
• Top with cooked asparagus and hazelnuts and serve chilled.