I’d like to still stick to my theme of my first post…VEGETABLES! What else can we do with wonderful veggies? SALADS! What are we going to do with those salads? GRILL ’em!

Personally, I had no idea there were such things as grilled salads, then I tried one. Holy cow, I mean…holy kale…so YUM. Grilling the romaine really brought out a whole new side to lettuce. Uh, I think they call it FLAVOR. Who knew that lettuce did not have to taste like water? If you have not had yourself a grilled salad, it is time.

Why do we like salads so much? They are so versatile and you can put everything but the kitchen sink into one. You can serve them up as a side or make them your main course with a juicy protein on top. The options are endless and all delicious. Here is what we created:

We used two heads of romaine lettuce and split them right down the middle. You want a nice hearty lettuce to take on the heat and not wilt right away. You could also use iceberg or cabbage and slice into beautiful round steaks of veggie-ness.

Here is what we did:

-Of course, wash and dry all produce.
-Preheat grill pan on medium high, for this recipe we used a panini press 🙂
-Slice the heads of romaine in half, length wise.
-Drizzle a small amount of olive oil and S & P all over the wedges. Careful not to use too much oil so your lettuce doesn’t get too much moisture. #nosoggysalads
-Grill your romaine halves 2-3 per side until just heated through and you see the char marks.
-Take off the heat and move to a separate plate or serving dish.
-Toss with your favorite toppings and dressing and BOOM!

The two salads pictured have a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic as one dressing and a cilantro avocado ranch for the other. I did not kill myself for this recipe, I used store bought ranch and added it to my food processor with an avocado and cilantro. We are allowed to save time in the kitchen!

These grilled salads are so delicious. Some of my favorite additions to a salad are beautiful heirloom tomatoes, avocado, grilled corn, and…cheese, any possible cheese. What are your fav toppings?

Pro Tip:

Whenever I have extra bread left over, I cut it into cubes and toss them in the oven at 350 with olive oil to toast them up. If I’m feeling crazy, I’ll add some spices and grated parm to the mix before I bake them. Add to a wedge or a grilled salad and you just added a lovely crunch to an already fab salad.

Your salads can be as creative or simple as you want them! Sometimes just a classic wedge with blue cheese or Caesar does the trick for me. Other times I am more adventurous with quinoa, dried fruits, and nuts. Anything you can think of, you can SALAD. “Lettuce” eat lettuce!