Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese Crostini.
Prep 15 mins Grill 10 mins Eat 25 mins
In a sea of delicious egg dishes at our Brunch Favorites Cooking class, this Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad from Curtis Stone’s “What’s for Dinner” cookbook was a standout. It balanced out the rest of the brunch items and added a sea of color too. Have you ever grilled an avocado or a tomato? If not, it’s time to start. The combination of the grilled avocado, tomatoes, zucchini and asparagus were extra delicious. I’m going to be making this salad all summer long!
The Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad were artfully arranged by the team of Carolyn, Mike and Tracie.
The Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad is super easy to make and the combination of the flavors balance each other. The sweet and acidic tomato that intensifies on the grill, the soft and creamy avocado, the grassy asparagus and earthiness of the charred zucchini. Yum! Top it all off with a goat cheese crostini…and well, you have a whole meal!
Meeting Curtis Stone again at the IACP Conference.
I have an affinity toward Curtis Stone. Who doesn’t?! I met Curtis when we plated his beautiful menu for 1100 guests a few years ago during Australia week. Standing across from him, his piercing blue eyes looking at me, he talked about the Glacier 51 toothfish (aka Chilean seabass) and the Spiced Australian Angus Pure Beef Short Ribs we would be plating. Any girl would melt with those eyes looking at you. Not only is he impressive in person and commanding of the 50 cooks surrounding him that I worked with that night, but the execution of his menu was worthy of any fine dining restaurant…plated for 1100 people, no less. The attention to detail was over the top, considering this was not a la minute cooking. Pictures on the wall of exactly where each item would be placed on the plate. We served those 1100 people each course in a matter of 10-15 minutes. It was one of the most impressive cooking experiences I’ve had.
Use a grill rack to prevent small items from falling through to the fire.
Here’s your opportunity to serve 8 people with this healthy and delicious summer salad in 25 minutes. Get the grill going and watch the magic happen.
Slicing up the grilled vegetables in a flash.
Have a space ready to slice and plate up your grilled veggies.
Tracie slices the vegetables while Carolyn artfully plates them.
Top the arugula with the sliced veggies.
The Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad served a lot of people.
Serve a beautiful platter of Grilled Vegetables and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese Crostini with a pair of tongs and be surprised by the fireworks of flavor in your mouth.
Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese Crostini
Dijon Vinaigrette
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1 1/2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 pinch Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Salad and Crostini
2 avocados, firm but ripe, pitted and quartered, but not peeled
2 medium tomatoes halved lengthwise
2 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise
2 zucchini, halved lengthwise
1 pound thin asparagus, woody stems trimmed
1 baguette, cut into 1/4″ thick slices
4 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature
2 Tablespoons olive oil for brushing
5 ounces baby arugula leaves
1. Prepare an outdoor grill for medium-high cooking over direct heat.
2. Make the vinaigrette: In a salad dressing shaker or small bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, shallots and mustard. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Prepare avocados, tomatoes, zucchini and asparagus. Place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil to coat lightly. Season with salt and pepper. Place cut sides of vegetables facing the grill and cook until they are slightly charred with grill marks, 3 minutes for avocados, 5 minutes for tomatoes, 4 minutes for zucchini and 3-5 minutes for the asparagus.
4. Brush baguette slices with olive oil. Place baguette slices in a separate area of the grill and cook one side until toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove from the grill and spread the goat cheese onto the toasted side of each slice. Set aside.
5. Spread arugula onto a platter and toss with enough vinaigrette to coat the leaves. Slice zucchini. Spoon avocados out of their shells and slice into wedges. Slice each tomato into 3 wedges. Distribute vegetables artfully on top of bed of arugula. Drizzle sparingly with vinaigrette. Serve with goat cheese crostini.
Servings: 8 396 calories per serving
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Grilled Vegetable and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese Crostini
Ingredients
Dijon Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons finely chopped shallots
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 pinch Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Salad and Crostini
- 2 avocados firm but ripe, pitted and quartered, but not peeled
- 2 medium tomatoes halved lengthwise
- 2 plum tomatoes halved lengthwise
- 2 zucchini halved lengthwise
- 1 pound thin asparagus woody stems trimmed
- 1 baguette cut into 1/4" thick slices
- 4 ounces goat cheese at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil for brushing
- 5 ounces baby arugula leaves
Instructions
- Prepare an outdoor grill for medium-high cooking over direct heat.
- Make the vinaigrette: In a salad dressing shaker or small bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, shallots and mustard. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Prepare avocados, tomatoes, zucchini and asparagus. Place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil to coat lightly. Season with salt and pepper. Place cut sides of vegetables facing the grill and cook until they are slightly charred with grill marks, 3 minutes for avocados, 5 minutes for tomatoes, 4 minutes for zucchini and 3-5 minutes for the asparagus.
- Brush baguette slices with olive oil. Place baguette slices in a separate area of the grill and cook one side until toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove from the grill and spread the goat cheese onto the toasted side of each slice. Set aside.
- Spread arugula onto a platter and toss with enough vinaigrette to coat the leaves. Slice zucchini. Spoon avocados out of their shells and slice into wedges. Slice each tomato into 3 wedges. Distribute vegetables artfully on top of bed of arugula. Drizzle sparingly with vinaigrette. Serve with goat cheese crostini.
- Servings: 8 396 calories per serving
- Preparation Time: 15 minutes
- Cooking Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- ENJOY THIS RECIPE FROM FreshFoodinaFlash.com
Oh my that dish is gorgeous, and so is Curtis. I have yet to grill avocados, so I can’t wait to try that. What a fabulous salad.