Grilled Asparagus, Peppers ‘n Tomato Salad

 

Grilled Asparagus, Peppers ‘n Tomato Salad

While those of you who endure frigid winters are craving garden-fresh produce such as asparagus, peppers and tomatoes, “we Floridians” are in our glory as these veggie gems are plentiful. So although I created this recipe smack in the middle of January, I waited until Summer to share it with you. Grilling just about any vegetable produces a rich caramelized taste unmatched by any other cooking method. Once you see how easy the process is, you’ll be forever hooked.
Author: Linda Shapiro, © Meal Planning Maven

Ingredients

Salad

  • Olive oil for grilling not extra-virgin
  • 1 pound asparagus tough ends trimmed off
  • 4 large bell peppers Red, yellow and orange are really pretty!
  • 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes I used a mixture of both in red and yellow.
  • 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
  • 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs such as dill, parsley, mint, cilantro, thyme, marjoram, etc.

Dressing

  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions

  • Grilling Asparagus: lightly brush asparagus with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Prepare grill for medium heat. Place asparagus in a grill pan. (Or place over direct heat if asparagus are thick enough to not fall through the grates.) Grill asparagus for 5 minutes or until nicely charred. Turn asparagus over and continue grilling for 5 minutes or until they reach desired doneness.
  • On a large serving platter, arrange grilled asparagus, peppers and tomatoes. Sprinkle with goat cheese, pine nuts and herbs. Drizzle salad lightly with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Notes

Make Ahead and Storage Tips: asparagus, peppers and tomatoes may be grilled up to 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Salad may be assembled (undressed) up to 4 hours before serving. Cover and refrigerate. Before serving, drizzle with oil and vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Grilled peppers and tomatoes are wonderful in salads and sauces and are a great addition to pasta dishes. Consider grilling additional peppers for use in future dishes as they freeze well. Grilled asparagus also would be a super-easy and healthy side dish.
Have fun experimenting with different varieties and sizes of tomatoes. Large yellow tomatoes add a pleasing “pop” of color while heirlooms make an absolutely beautiful presentation.
Another lovely dish using grilled peppers and tomatoes is Grilled Pepper Caprese Salad.

Grilled_Peppr_Caprese_Salad

5 Responses

  1. Kecia
    Asparagus is truly my favorite veggie! I love this combo with the tomatoes!!<br /><br />Me too Kecia! I keep dreaming about future dishes using this super-star veggie! Thanks for stopping by!
  2. Joanne T Ferguson
    G'day Linda and congrats also on being featured via The Olive and Grapevine Salad newsletter this week too!<br />Cheers! Joanne<br />GREAT salad!<br /><br />Thank you so much Joanne! The Olive and Grapevine by Deanna Samaan is an amazing publication and I am so honored to have my recipe included. I'm so happy you stopped by to visit!
  3. I love your vegetable selection for grilling. We grill our veggies all summer and in the winter I roast them in the oven. They are so sweet and delicious this way. I add the leftovers to omelettes.
  4. Delicious I love to taste it, thanks for sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop, pinning and tweeting.
  5. This salad has all my favourite veggies, Linda! It looks absolutely beautiful and so delicious too. Thank you for sharing it with us at the Hearth and Soul Hop. Stumbled and tweeted!