Cold Green Bean Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

Cold Green Bean Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

This fresh and light salad is sure to have everyone coming back for seconds. For a variation, swap the goat cheese with feta and use roasted pine nuts instead of almonds.

Ingredients

• Ingredients:
• ice as needed
• 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
• Vinaigrette:
• 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 pinch sugar, or more to taste
• Garnish:
• 2 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled
• ¼ cup toasted sliced almonds

Directions

1. Make an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice water, and set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add green beans, and blanch until just tender-crisp, 3 to 4 minutes (do not overcook). Drain green beans, and immediately add to ice bath to stop cooking; set aside.
3. Whisk olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar together in a small bowl.
4. Drain green beans well and pat dry with a paper towel to avoid diluting the dressing. Place into a bowl and drizzle with vinaigrette, tossing gently to coat.
5. Transfer tossed green beans to a serving dish. Garnish with goat cheese and almonds.