Grilled Salad

I’ve been making a whole lot of rich food lately. The cold weather just seems to beg for stews and soups and roasts and I’ve been loving it, but after a stretch of that I’ve found myself craving a big salad. Of course, it would have to be a salad that also somehow seemed appropriate for the season, and that means it has to be warm.

I’ve had wilted salads before and really enjoyed them, but I thought that with this I’d go even further and grill the lettuce. The char really makes it taste heavenly. And then I went ahead and cooked everything else too. The result is a roasted, warm, salad, packed with bursts of flavor and tossed in a refreshing lemon vinaigrette. It might be one of the most flavorful salads I’ve ever eaten.

Grilled Salad
3 romaine hearts
olive oil
1 pint grape tomatoes
balsamic vinegar
Feta Cheese
Spicy Nuts
Lemon Vinaigrette
zest and juice of 2 lemons
1 T white wine vinegar
1/2 C olive oil

With the weather running cold, I used my Foreman Grill to grill the lettuce inside. I cut each romaine heart down the middle, leaving the root intact for ease, sprinkled some olive oil on the cut side, and tossed it on the grill.

While the lettuce was grilling I also roasted up the tomatoes. I just cut the tomatoes down the middle, tossed them with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and spread them out on a lined cookie sheet and roasted them until they were shriveled and delicious.

Then for the vinaigrette, just combine all the ingredients in a container with a tight lid and shake it up to combine.

Chop the grilled lettuce into bite sized pieces and toss all the ingredients together with dressing to taste.

I ate this entire bowl myself over a couple of meals and I’m already looking forward to the next time I have it. With only a few ingredients and some pretty simple steps, I got a burst of freshness and flavor that will make me re-appreciate the rich winter food I love.