Shaved Asparagus Salad with Pesto

5 from 1 vote

Shaved Asparagus Salad with Pesto

Shaved asparagus salad with pesto is a delightful and elegant dish. Packed full of fresh basil, radishes, asparagus and lemon, this salad screams summertime. Bring this salad to your next gathering and be the star of the show!

Prep Time15 mins

Total Time15 mins

Course: Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: asparagus, pesto, raw, salad

Servings: servings

Calories: 98kcal

Author: Maggie

Ingredients

Pesto:

1 cup basil loosely packed*
1 cup parsley loosely packed*
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 small lemon juiced
1 clove garlic
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/4 cup water
pinch salt, more to taste

Asparagus Salad

1 bunch asparagus thick stalks
4 radishes sliced thin

Instructions

Make the Pesto

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend on high until smooth. Add more water a tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Season with more salt and lemon juice as desired.

Shaved Asparagus Salad

Start by laying one stalk of asparagus on a cutting board. Holding the tip, use a vegetable peeler to shave down the stalk. (I highly recommend using a Y-peeler which makes it easier to shave, but you can use a regular vegetable peeler too.) When the first side becomes awkward to shave, turn the stalk over and repeat until you cannot shave anymore. Chop off the tip and roughly chop the remaining stalk. Add tip, shavings and remaining stalk to a large bowl. Repeat with remaining asparagus.
Toss the shaved asparagus with 1/4 cup pesto. Taste and add more pesto as desired. Add sliced radishes to the top and serve right away!

Notes

*Alternatively, you can use 2 cups basil, or play around with different herbs such as tarragon, thyme or arugula. You need about 2 loosely packed cups of greens and/or herbs here.

Pesto: You will have more pesto than you need for this recipe. Save it and store it in an airtight container for another use. Pesto is great on pizza, pasta, sandwiches and more!

Storage: This salad is best eaten within a few hours of making it as the shaved asparagus will start to get limp and the pesto will discolor. If you do want to store it, put it in an airtight container for up to 1 day.

Nutrition