A Garden and a Grilled Salad

Well, we did it!

J and I have planted our vegetable garden. Only time will tell how well it turns out, but I will let you all know!

So - onto dinner. I make lots of salad. Sometimes the kids eat it - J likes raw veggies - A only eats fruit and protein. Nary a green vegetable has passed her lips since she was able to fend for herself at the table. She loves all things dairy (as do most kids) and will eat lots and lots on any given day.

I am happy to say that J, while rejecting anything that "looks" like it might have sauce, is pretty open to veggies and fruit (of course). And, both kids love to stand in the kitchen while I am prepping fruit and ask for it as I go! (I cut everything up and put it into containers when I get home - easier this way - and more likely that we will eat it!)

Anyway - back to the salad...

I have been making this for years. IT seems odd to grill lettuce, but let me tell you - it is terrific! The first time I made it for a crowd, they all thought I was crazy. Once they had it - they asked for more - and it is Jay's favorite way to have salad.

Very easy to do - goes with everything - and you can throw in any type of grilled veggie as well.

Basic recipe for grilled salad:

1 head romaine or green lettuce
1 head radicchio
1-2 heads belgian endive
2 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste

Dressing
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat grill. (You can use an indoor grill pan too...)

2. Cut lettuces lengthwise keeping the stem/core in tact so the lettuce doesn't fall apart. (I usually half the romaine/green lettuce/endive and quarter the radiccio.

3. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper

4. Place lettuces on grill and heat about 2-3 minutes per side. You are looking for some wilting and some nice grill marks. I usually let the radicchio go a bit longer, since it is thicker than the others. It is also nice if there is a bit of charring on the thin ends.

5. Remove from grill. Chop roughly and toss with balsamic vinegar a bit more olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper. Serve warm!


Tonight I didn't have any endive, but I did have some zucchini, scallions and bell peppers. So I sliced the zucchini lengthwise, cut the bottom of the scallions and quartered the red peppers. Threw those on the grill with the lettuces, chopped everything together - YUM!!!

Have a great week and grill that salad!

And at the end of the day.....

So at the end of the day (actually 6:15 in the a.m.) I made my choice - and voted for Hillary. It was not an easy decision (although I pretty much was convinced - as played out in the polls - that Illinois would go for Obama).

But, I do think that she can clean up the mess left by this current administration. And, as my good friend Roni notes, hopefully if Clinton wins the nomination, Obama and his grassroots campaign will rally together around Clinton to organize voters for the Fall.

In the meantime, either way - I think this election is an incredibly powerful indictment of what has happened over the past 8 years under this administration. And while some may think that having 2 candidates in the Democratic primary will "divide" the party - I think it is quite the opposite.

Think about the boundaries that have been broken here - we are choosing (at least for the Democrats) between a woman and an African-American man. Unbelievable. Historic. And both could be outstanding Presidents - albeit different styles. The fact that we even have this choice means that Change is Happening!

The fact is that whoever is the nominee, I will fight tooth and nail for them. And, if egos aside, we get our dream ticket of Obama and Clinton (in either order) - I think that would truly be the path to a whole new world.