Side Dishes for the Grill

Here are the two side dishes recipes I promised from our steak dinner this past Saturday night. This recipe for Grilled Potato & Mushroom Packages was adapted from Fine Cooking magazine (July 2000). The creator of this original recipe is Susie Middleton. She has a blog and a cookbook called Fast, Fresh & Green: More Than 90 Delicious Recipes for Veggie Lovers, both worth checking out. This cookbook provides new ideas for roasting, braising, sauteing, grilling your veggies - what's not to love!

Shaun and I have made potatoes on the grill before, wrapped in foil, and they come out good but a little crispy sometimes. Susie's technique of turning the potatoes over halfway through cooking allows them to cook all the way through without crisping up on the outside. There is a liberal amount of oil used in this recipe as well so of course that helps. It was extremely tasty, let me tell you - I will be using this recipe again and again this summer!

Ingredients:
1 lb red potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
4 oz cremini or baby bella mushrooms, quartered
1 small onion, cut into chunks
1/4 cup olive oil
4 large garlic cloves, quartered
1/2 tbsp dried rosemary
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions:
Light a charcoal or gas fire. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Meanwhile, measure out three 14-inch-long sheets of foil. Split the mixture of ingredients between all three sheets of foil and fold up covering everything. Take another three small pieces of foil and wrap around each package to seal.

When the grill is medium hot, put the packages on the grate directly over the hottest part. Cover the grill and cook for 20 minutes. Using tongs, turn the packages over and cook for another 20 minutes. If your fire is very hot, shorten the cooking times by a couple of minutes on both sides. If it's cooler, lengthen the total cooking time to 45 to 50 minutes.

Open the packages carefully with tongs; the steam will be very hot. The potatoes are done when they feel tender when pierced and come are deep brown and charred. Kept wrapped, they'll stay warm off the grill for 15 to 20 minutes. Serves 2-3 as a side dish.

This recipe for Grilled Caesar Salad was adapted from The Neely's of Food Network. I have grilled romaine lettuce before alongside grilled lemon halves. They are delicious with just the lemon juice on them - straight off the grill. This creamy dressing is a wonderful change of pace! Typically a creamy Caesar dressing is not up my alley but this recipe lacks the eggs and anchovy so I like it. Of course you can just buy a bottle of dressing but this one is so easy to whip up, you should give it a try!

Ingredients:
3 garlic cloves
4 tbsp fresh lemon juice (1 lemon)
1 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2-3/4 cup, plus 3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus shaved Parmesan for serving
3 heads romaine hearts, sliced lengthwise in 1/2
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:
Preheat grill to medium heat. In a blender or mini-food processor, combine the garlic, lemon juice and Dijon mustard. Drizzle in 1/2-3/4 cup olive oil to emulsify. Add the Parmesan and pulse.

Gently toss the hearts of romaine in remaining olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill for about 5 minutes, until grill marks appear and the romaine becomes wilted.

Remove the lettuce to a cutting board and cut into 2-inch wide strips. Place in a bowl and drizzle with the dressing. Toss to coat and serve warm. Garnish with the shaved Parmesan. Serves 3-5.

Tutti Mangia!