I had a lovely piece of grilled salmon with a spring salad at The Pearl Restaurant and Oyster Bar the other night, and the salad wowed me! Crunchy, crispy, tasty and healthy. Their version featured sliced asparagus and a strawberry dressing, but I could not find any good-looking asparagus this morning. I did have some bok-choy in my fridge so I used that instead. And I decided to change up the dressing. Serve this or bring it to your next barbecue, and have the recipe handy, everyone is going to want it.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup shredded red cabbage
• 1/2 english cucumber, sliced into strips, on the bias
• 4 - 5 stalks bok choy, cut on the bias
• 1 cup sugar snap peas, de-strung and cut on the bias (you can use snow peas instead!)
• 1 red pepper and 1 orange pepper, cut into strips
• 4 - 5 scallions, cut on the bias
• 1/2 red onion, cut into strips and rinsed under cold water
• 1 cup strawberries, sliced
• 1 cup sliced almonds

Rinse and dry all veggies thoroughly. The goal is to cut these into thin 2 - 3 inch strips, but the diagonal slices make for a stunning presentation. Here is an example of how I cut my cucumber.

If you have a mandoline, have at it. I have one but chose to use my knife instead. Once all vegetables are in the bowl, it should look something like this.

For the dressing:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• the zest and juice of (3) limes
• a drizzle of honey
• a pinch of salt
• 1 TBSP. each finely chopped cilantro and basil

Add the strawberries and almonds to the salad. Whisk the dressing ingredients together and toss salad gently, about one hour or so before serving. It is crispy, crunchy, delicious and de-LIGHT-ful! Serve with grilled meats or seafood, shish-ke-bab and enjoy as a crunchy and delicious lunch the next day. Mine will be sitting next to some grilled beef and chicken satay lettuce wraps. Enjoy!