Name: Grilled Summer Vegetable Salad Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 crookneck or yellow summer squash (cut into 1/2-inch slices); 1 medium zucchini (cut into 1/2-inch slices); 1 Japanese eggplant (cut into 1/2-inch slices); 1/3 cup + 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil (divided); salt and pepper; 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar; 12 basil leaves (chiffonaded (rolled, then thinly sliced)); 12 mint leave (chiffonaded); 1/3 cup crumbled (good-quality feta cheese)

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The fresh flavors of grilled summer vegetable salad - summer squash, zucchini and eggplant - make a fantastic summertime side when mixed with feta cheese and a light vinaigrette.

My crookneck squash was begging to have its pictures taken. Who am I to deny a squash its 15 minutes of fame?

It's a miracle that we even have vegetables to harvest this year. We were feeling rather pleased with ourselves when we planted all of our vegetable seeds in the Spring and set them near a window to take in the warmth of the sunlight.

Birds chirping...Spring breeze whispering through the Aspen leaves...vegetable sprouts dying a slow death.

That's right...we forgot to water them. It's amazing that we managed to graduate from university. However, we do take much better care of our children than we do our vegetable sprouts. We water them several times per day. With summer just around the corner, we made a trip to the nursery, heads hanging low, to buy some established vegetable plants to fill the beautiful raised bed that my husband built. All is well that ends well.

The recipe:

Preheat the grill to high heat.

Cut 2 crookneck or yellow summer squash, 1 medium-sized zucchini, and 1 Japanese eggplant into ½-inch slices. Feel free to use any combination of summer vegetables that tickle your fancy.

Place all of the slices in a medium bowl and toss with ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the vegetable slices on the hot grill and cook until the vegetables are just tender, turning once.

Remove the vegetables from the grill, cut them into 1-inch pieces, and place in a medium-sized bowl.In a small bowl, slowly whisk ½ cup of extra-virgin olive oil into ¼ cup balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss the vegetables with some of the vinaigrette. You shouldn't need all of it, but add to your taste.

Thinly slice about a dozen each of basil and mint leaves. Toss with the vegetables. Top with ⅓ cup of crumbled, good-quality feta cheese. I found a lovely sheep's milk feta that added a creamy, slightly tangy flavor without overpowering the vegetables.

Serve at room temperature.

Other summer squash recipes:

101 Cookbooks' Summer Squash Gratin
Kalyn's Kitchen's Zucchini & Yellow Squash Soup with Rosemary & Parmesan
Smitten Kitchen's Herbed Summer Squash & Potato Torte

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