If you’ve been using the grill all summer, you may have tried a grilled salad or two. If not, here’s your chance. Give this unique recipe for grilled Caesar salad with dressing a go. It’s a fun way to prepare a salad!
Greens, meet grill
If you’re like a lot of people, the grill practically replaces the oven during the warmest months of the year. Preparing salad doesn’t typically require the oven (or grill), but while you’re grilling up fish or portobello burgers, why not give your salad a good grilling too? Sound crazy? It’s not. It’s actually really easy to grill up a great Caesar salad along with a few croutons. The flames give this salad a nice flavor and it’s a fun way to prepare your greens. It makes a fun presentation, especially when you’re having a get-together.
Make this tasty recipe for orecchiette pasta with broccoli rabe >>
To your health and the environment’s!
Have you tried replacing meat in your diet, at least for one day a week? That’s what the Meatless Monday movement is all about! There are many benefits associated with it, too. According to Meatless Monday, there are a number of studies that show the health and environmental benefits associated with going meat free at least one day a week. Consider the following:
For your health:
- Diets high in fruits and vegetables may reduce cancer risk
- Replacing saturated fat-rich foods (like meat) with foods rich in polyunsaturated fats (nuts, vegetable oil, seeds) can reduce the risk of heart disease
- Diets high in red and processed meats may increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes
- A reduction in meat consumption can lower long-term weight gain
For the environment’s health:
- Reduce greenhouse gas emissions — Studies show the meat industry generates about 1/5 of the manmade greenhouse gas emissions
- Reduce water usage — Anywhere from 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into producing a pound of beef versus 220 gallons of water for a pound of tofu
- Cut fossil fuel (coal, oil, natural gas) dependence — Forty calories of fossil fuel energy go into every calorie of feed lot beef in the U.S. compared to 2.2 calories of fossil fuel energy needed to produce one calorie of a plant-based protein
There are many interesting, plant-based meal options available. Take a look at some of these delicious Meatless Monday recipes. Your options seem endless!
Grilled Caesar salad with dressing
Recipe courtesy of Grab a Plate
Serves 2-4 people
Ingredients:
- 2 heads romaine lettuce
- 2 large slices Italian bread, brushed lightly with olive oil on both sides
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 large lemon, juiced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1-1/4 teaspoons anchovy paste
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra to shave and use as garnish
- Nonstick cooking spray
Directions:
- For the dressing, combine all the ingredients into a food processor and mix. Taste the dressing and adjust the seasoning to your taste. When finished, refrigerate until ready to use.
- Lightly spray or brush your grill grate with nonstick cooking spray. Heat the grill to medium.
- Place the whole romaine over the heat. Grill on both sides for about two minutes each side, taking care they don’t burn. You want them lightly charred. When the lettuce is almost finished, add the slices of Italian bread to the grill, away from the flame. Allow the bread to get toasty with just slight grill markings.
- Arrange the romaine on individual plates. Cut several slices into the hearts, vertically. You want to do this so the dressing runs into the inside of the romaine hearts.
- Cut the bread into small, bite-sized pieces and toss on top of the romaine.
- Drizzle the romaine and croutons with the dressing and shave Parmesan cheese over top.
Make your next Caesar salad a bit more interesting simply by adding it to the grill!
More Meatless Monday recipes to try
Start the week with a pizza party
Meatless Monday Mediterranean style
Summer fruits and vegetables make meals a snap
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