Sometimes, I confess, the seasons just don’t move quickly enough for me. It’s been a long winter full of winter squash and dark leafy greens, beef and bread. The only fruits have been a touch of citrus, but it’s not grown locally, so not often; lots and lots of delicious apples in the most amazing varieties; a few pears early on; and loads of dried fruit. The few packages of frozen fruit I was able to put aside went very quickly for smoothies and yogurt topping.

It finally got to a point this week where I could take no more. We’ve already had our first 93° day, the air conditioner has already kicked on once or twice, the garden is in and sprouting, and organic strawberries arrived at the store. I chose Florida-grown over California-grown: even if they are grown at the furthest tip of Florida, that’s “only” 1000 miles from here. Read here about why it’s so very important to choose organic strawberries.

And it was worth every mile. Every single bite was densely flavorful and absolutely sang of spring! I probably won’t indulge again until the foods of springtime are available locally, but it was just the lift my heart needed. And while I try not to eat foods shipped at great distance or out of season, the exception is all the more a special occasion.

The orange juice took much of the “avocado” flavor out of the dressing, so even my avocado-haters didn’t threaten revolt. The dandelion greens (so very plentiful this time of year) provided a nice bite to the sweetness in the rest of the salad. This fed all 7 of us, but if you love salad, it might only serve 4.

Early Spring Salad
3 green onions, just the white part, sliced
1 avocado, peeled and pitted
2 oranges, juiced
1 large handful foraged (unsprayed) dandelion greens
1 head romaine lettuce
6 boiled eggs, shelled and sliced (we used leftover Easter eggs!)
12 organic strawberries, washed and hulled

Combine onions, avocado and orange juice in blender. Season as desired with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Tear greens and toss in large salad bowl. Divide greens among plates, top with eggs, strawberries and a dab of dressing.

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