Grill Your Greens

I've mentioned before that I absolutely love grilling out in the summertime. Now that meat is no longer an option, I am constantly on the lookout for other things to throw on the grill (well, for Jason to throw on the grill). This was a hot topic at work the other day – so Chrissy and Abby, this post is for you!

Grill up your salad! (Based on a recipe found here.)

Prepare the dressing.

I thought becoming vegan meant my days of creamy dressings (ranch, caesar, etc.) were over, boy was I wrong! This creamy dressing is avocado based and oh so good for you. It would be delicious atop any salad, or even topping some grilled fajitas (made with portobello mushrooms of course). Pop all ingredients in a food processor and give it a whirl: 1 avocado, juice from 2 small limes, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 clove garlic, 1 teaspoon honey, ½ teaspoon cumin, salt to taste, and about ¼ cup of water (more or less depending on how thick you want your dressing).

Prep the lettuce.

Grab a romaine heart, wash and slice in half. Mix together a chopped clove of garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Brush the cut side of the lettuce and it’s grill-ready.

Grill the greens.

Place romaine hearts cut side down over medium-low heat. Grill for 1-2 minutes then flip over and grill an additional 1-2 minutes. The lettuce should start to brown and wilt, but not be completely limp (you still want some crunch).

Assemble the salad.

Top the romaine with avocado dressing and chives. An impressive presentation is to serve it in one piece wedge-style, but feel free to cut it up then serve.

Ready, Set, Garden!

Since we are consuming a ridiculous amount of veg these days, it seems like the logical next step would be to grow some of our own. We attempted a backyard garden last year. Due to the extreme heat and drought-like conditions, the output was minimal (and probably due to us being novices). Since then, Jason has clocked several hours (and I've clocked a few hours) volunteering at the downtown community garden. He's picked up some tips from the pros and we are much more experienced and prepared this time around. 

We spent Sunday prepping the garden and planting. Here's the garden all cleaned out and ready to go.

And hey! What's that colorful mixture of goodness on top of the soil, you ask? It's the pulp we saved from juicing! You can mix it into the soil for compost. Talk about a beautiful trifecta. Good for the soil, the soon-to-be veggies, and us! 

Hot tip: If you don't have a garden, you can donate your pulp to a local community garden or farm!

On the summer garden agenda this year: tomatoes, Thai peppers, habaneros, rainbow carrots, onions, eggplant, cilantro, parsley, and dill. Come on over in a few months for some SPICY salsa!

And I had to include this picture of Sasha. She loves gardening season too, just another excuse to be outside all day!