Summer is my most favorite season because everything is soooo abundant! The fruits and vegetables are just wonderful, gardens and farmers markets are flourishing! It's so rewarding even watching my own (or I should say my husband's) garden grow. He has the green thumb, but I am definitely involved. He grows it and I cook it!
My summer salad recipe will follow but I just wanted to give you a few tips to consider when preparing salads.
* When shopping always choose what looks best - the freshest and most local produce available.
*It's always nice to add some kind of crunch to your salad. Nuts, chowmein noodles, bacon bits crumbled, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, croutons or tortilla chips to name a few.
*Prepare your salad in your mixing bowl and then transfer it into a pretty bowl to make for nice presentation.
* Adding leftover meat, chicken, fish can transform your salad into a meal.
*Have fun with it become the chef I know you are. Sometimes an added touch like fresh herbs or a bottled vinaigrette is an easy way to make it your own.
So go crazy with summer salads... healthy and always delicious!
Grilled Shrimp, Tomato and Corn Salad, with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette
20 Peeled and deveined shrimp (16-20 count)
3 Beefsteak tomatoes, halved
3 ears of corn, picked, chopped
½ cup lime juice
1 cup cilantro picked
1 cup olive oil
2 Shallots, fine dice
1 Jalapeño, small dice
Salt and pepper
For the vinaigrette:
In a blender add cilantro, lime, shallot, jalapeño. Slowly add in oil, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
Fire up the grill to medium high heat
Put the shrimp in a bowl and mix in 3 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Let sit for 20 minutes and grill the shrimp- about 4 minutes. Set aside.
Season the tomatoes with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil, then cook them on the grill. You're looking for a nice char. Let cool. Cut into 4 pieces each.
Repeat the same process on the corn. Let cool. Slice the kernels from cob. Mix tomatoes and corn together and dress with some vinaigrette. Add the shrimp. Season with more salt and pepper if necessary.
And as always, Enjoy!
I thought that I seen a section where you had grocery shopping lists. How can we find them?