Here's a great recipe for a light and colorful green salad.

This salad’s balance of flavors and layers of texture is what makes it appealing. We begin with all local ingredients, using fresh Mache from a local farmers market, adding fresh goat cheese for some creaminess; pickled carrots for a tart crunch; and caramelized walnuts to round out its taste.

Additionally, a combination of a rich-tasting olive oil, pickled carrots, lemon juice, along with a few other seasonings, creates a simple yet satisfying vinaigrette to add a tasty zest to this salad.

With similar aromas and flavors, the Weihenstephan’s Hefeweizen, a German wheat beer, noted for its low hop bitterness, malty sweetness and rich yeasty taste is the perfect compliment for this light meal.

DC Carrot Vinaigrette
Yield: ¾ cup
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Donovan’s Cellar Orange Cumin Carrots brine
1 tablespoon shallots, minced
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of ½ lemon
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon of kosher salt, or to taste
Coarsely ground black pepper to taste

In a small mixing bowl, combine the lemon juice, DC brine, shallots, garlic, salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil in a thin, steady stream.

Keep refrigerated until ready to use. Can be stored up to 3 days.

Pickled Carrot Salad
Serves 4
8 ounces light, tender greens such as Mache or Bibb lettuce
½ jar Donovan’s, julienned or thinly sliced
1 cup crumbled goat cheese
1 cup caramelized walnuts, coarsely chopped
¾ cup DC Carrot Vinaigrette
pinch of salt
coarsely ground fresh pepper

In a large bowl, gently combine lettuce, salt, pepper and vinaigrette.

To serve, split lettuce into 4 plates, top with small crumbled cheese bits, pickle carrots and caramelized walnuts.