Grilled Summer Salad!

Ingredients: 

• 1-2 ears of Corn 

• 2 Portobello mushroom caps

• 1-2 Poblano peppers

• ½ - 1 yellow onion

• 1-2 medium zucchini

• 1 Avocado

• 1 Lime (optional)

• ¼ - ½ cup Feta (optional)

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) for vinaigrette and extra to prep the vegetables

• 3 tablespoons of vinegar (e.g., red wine, white wine, apple cider)

• 1-3 cloves of Garlic

• 1 tablespoon dijon or brown mustard 

• 1 teaspoon dry herbs of choice (e.g., pre-made italian blend or oregano, parsley, thyme or a combination of these)

• Salt and black pepper

Equipment:

• A grill

• Tongs

• Cutting board

• Knife

• Whisk

• Mixing bowl (one for the salad & one to prep the vinaigrette)

• Measuring cups and spoons

• A spoon for mixing

• Baking sheet (or large tray or platter)

Instructions:

1. Start grill to allow it to heat to temperature (keep burners on high - cooking at medium to high temperatures will allow nice grill marks to form on your vegetables) 

2. Prepare vegetables (cutting board and knife needed)

   1. Shuck corn if needed

   2. Remove stem from mushroom caps and wipe of any dirt (do not wash your mushrooms) 

   3. Poblano peppers - no prep required

   4. Cut onion in half through the root end leaving the root end attached (the hairy end) - and remove the outer skin

   5. Slice zucchini in about ⅛ inch slices lengthwise

   6. Cut avocado in half and remove pit

   7. Cut lime in half

3. Place all your vegetables on a baking sheet or large tray 

4. Drizzle them with EVOO (ensure all the vegetables are well coated so they do not stick to the grill)

5. Season all the vegetables with salt and black pepper (one teaspoon of each for the whole tray should be sufficient - depending how many veggies you’re using - but each veggie or slice should get a sprinkle of each).

6. Grill the vegetables

   1. Here is a list of the vegetables in order by most amount of time to least amount of time they will need on the grill (Corn, onion, poblano, mushroom, lime, zucchini, avocado)

Note: the “harder” vegetables take longer to cook

2. Allow them to get good char and grill marks; check and turn them when one side has nice dark brown marks.

7. Use a fork or the tongs to press into the vegetable to check for doneness - they should be tender but not too hard/raw and not mushy

8. Once done - remove from the grill and return them to your baking sheet or tray, turn off your grill, and set them aside

9. Prepare your vinaigrette - in a small bowl add in the following ingredients:

   1. Peel and mince or crush 2 cloves of garlic (use less if you do not like garlic, use more if you do)

   2. About ¼ teaspoon salt and a pinch of black pepper

   3. About 1 teaspoon dry herbs of choice

   4. Add 1 tablespoon of mustard

   5. Whisk in the vinegar

   6. While continuing to whisk, slowly drizzle/pour in the EVOO until everything is incorporated - set aside

10. Cut up all your grilled vegetables into small dices (or however you prefer to cut them), cut the corn kernels off the cob, put everything into a mixing bowl and mix together

11. Add about a tablespoon of the vinaigrette at a time, you want it to be coated but not drowning in the dressing (taste and add more if you wish)

12. Optional: Squeeze some lime on the top

13. Optional: Sprinkle some feta on the top

Mix and Enjoy!

See video here!