Parma Ham & Buffalo Mozzarella with Spring Vegetables | Recipe

Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 5mins | Cook time: 10mins

Salty Parma ham with sweet, milky buffalo mozzarella is a marriage made in heaven. Add to that some simply dressed spring vegetables  and you have a sunny, light picnic salad.

Ingredients

• 250g asparagus spears
• 100g fresh or frozen peas
• 100g fresh or frozen broad beans
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
• 1 unwaxed lemon
• 2 tbsp roughly chopped tarragon
• 2 buffalo mozzarella balls
• 8 slices Parma ham
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• crusty bread, to serve

Method

Snap the woody ends off the asparagus and discard them. Cook the asparagus in a pan of salted boiling water for 1 minute, then add the peas and broad beans and cook for a further 2 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold running water.

Tip the blanched vegetables into a large bowl and toss through the olive oil, the grated zest of ½ lemon and the tarragon. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to an airtight container. Keep chilled until you leave for your picnic; the salad can be prepared to this stage quite a few hours ahead, but I wouldn’t leave it overnight.

To serve, transfer the dressed vegetables to a large platter. Use your hands to tear the buffalo mozzarella and plate it next to the vegetables, draping the ham next to it. Drizzle the dish with olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and add a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Enjoy with some crusty bread.