Fresh from the garden and perfect for a summer day!
The tastes of the vegetables speak for themselves with this light and healthy dish. A trip to the local farmers market before and a glass of a Chardonnay served with it makes for a perfect afternoon!
Ingredients Needed to Serve 4
This is a wonderful side salad or as an entrée split for 2
3 Sweet Bell Peppers of different colors
3 Baby Japanese Eggplant
1 Zucchini
1 Red Onion
2 Vine Ripened Tomatoes – sliced into wedge halves
Fresh Basil – to taste
Fresh Mint – to taste
Salt to taste
Cracked Pepper Corns – to taste
2 Tbsp of Aged, Sweet Balsamic Vinegar – your choice
2 Cloves Garlic – chopped
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Cup of your Favorite Olives
Preparation Time Necessary: about 40 minutes
Vegetable Preparation: Cover whole eggplants with rock salt and let sit for 30 minutes in a strainer. This process will remove any bitter water from the eggplant.
While eggplant is sitting salted, grill whole peppers until the skin is blackened evenly. Place in a bowl and cover with a plate for 10-15 minutes. Remove from bowl and peel skin from peppers. Slice into serving size pieces, remove stem and seeds, and set aside in large mixing bowl.
Rinse salt from eggplant and dry them. Slice the eggplant and zucchini and grill until tender; add to the peppers. Rinse the onion slices under cold water and add to vegetables – not grilled. These will add texture and crispness to the salad.
Mix all remaining ingredients together until coated evenly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve chilled or room temperature; as you like it. Check for taste and make any adjustments right before serving.
Serving Suggestions: Add Spicy Grilled Sausage slices and serve over your favorite pasta. I prefer Linguica, Hot Italian, or Chorizo.
Other uses: For leftovers, you can dice and serve in a veggie sandwich or grilled panini or place leftovers in a food processor and blend until into a chunky paste. Use as a dip with pita chips.
Fresh from the garden and perfect for a summer day!
