Seamus Mullen's Raw Squash Salad with Radishes, Manchego, and Lemon Vinaigrette

All week long, the GrowNYC team will be sharing recipes from The Greenmarket Cookbook -- and giving away one copy each day. Now get to the market, and make the most of summer's brightest produce before the season is over.

Today: With flavors as bright as its colors, this salad is summer on a plate.

Go ahead and save this recipe now, because you’re going to want to make this bright, gorgeously fresh salad from Seamus Mullen, owner of Tertulia and El Colmado, all season long. Simply shave raw summer squash and radishes on a mandolin, whisk together a quick, citrusy vinaigrette, shower it all with grated Manchego, and finish it with handfuls of basil and mint. 

You can use standard squash such as zucchini and crookneck in this recipe, but it’s even more beautiful with a mix of colors and shapes, from sunny yellow pattypans to ridged Romanescos to the perfectly round, aptly named eight-ball. Some farmers grow horseradish root, which grows straight and deep and has wonderful heat when grated fresh, but if you can’t find it for this dressing, prepared horseradish works just fine. 

Raw Squash Salad with Radishes, Manchego, and Lemon Vinaigrette

Serves 4

2 1/2 pounds mixed summer squash and zucchini, various shapes, sizes, and varieties
1 peeled shallot
1 bunch mixed radishes, green stems removed, cleaned
1 garlic clove, finely minced 
1 tablespoon honey
2 lemons, juiced and zested, to make 2 teaspoons zest and 4 tablespoons juice
2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar or sweet white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon grated fresh horseradish
1/2 cup basil leaves, torn into small pieces
1/2 cup mint leaves, torn into small pieces
2 ounces finely grated Manchego cheese, about 1 cup

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

We're giving away a copy of The Greenmarket Cookbook each day this week! To enter to win today's copy, tell us in the comments: How are you using up your summer squash? We'll choose our winners next Monday, August 25th.

Photo by GrowNYC. Excerpted from The Greenmarket Cookbook by Gabrielle Langholtz. Reprinted by permission of GrowNYC. All rights reserved.

Update: Jan Weber is our winner! We hope you enjoy your copy of The Greenmarket Cookbook.