When the temps rise, we turn to grilled foods and entree salads for dinner.
It is HOT here this week. And I do not have AC…I know, I’m possibly the only person in North America without it. But we live in New England where it isn’t usually blisteringly hot, and I’m a hothouse flower anyway, so I don’t need it particularly cool. I’ve never been able to justify the expense of adding it to my 1970 builder home for the 4 days a year when it is would be really nice to have!
BUT turning on the stove or oven at these (according to my phone app) “feels like” triple digit temps is pretty much out of the question.
We’ve survived the week on a steady flow of iced tea w rosemary syrup, a vat of our favorite Hearty Quinoa Salad in the fridge, and an assortment of grilled food. Except for an unfortunate power outage for about 8 hrs, we’ve done reasonably well. I am very much NOT cut out for prairie life, as it turns out. Being disconnected from the internet and concurrently without decent cell service to gripe about it was sheer torture!
We are blessedly back to steamy normal and my son just returned from a road trip so we are back to cooking again. Grilled protein atop a green salad is a favorite hot weather dining staple here.
Today I’m sharing our secrets for making a delicious version of one of our favorites:
Grilled Shrimp Caesar Salad
This is fast and easy and 100% delicious! Also, practically healthy….I mean it’s SALAD, right? Regardless, it is worth whatever calories may ensue. We are sweating them off anyway 😏
While this calls for shrimp, any protein you like works equally well - we’ve topped it with grilled chicken, grilled sirloin tips, grilled pork, and grilled salmon (well not me personally - I hate salmon, but the rest of my family loves it). It’s also a great way to use up leftover grilled meat.
Ingredients
Romaine lettuce, washed and torn into pieces
Jumbo shrimp, peeled, tail on (approximately 6 per serving)
A chunk of Parmigiano Reggiano
Homemade Caesar dressing (okay, you can buy a bottle, but I promise the homemade version is easy and tastes better!) - Recipe(s) below
Homemade croutons - Recipe below
Directions
Season greens and toss with Caesar dressing to coat lightly
Grill the shrimp ~ (marinate in Caesar or vinaigrette dressing for about 30 minutes prior to grilling for a little extra flavor) Grill over medium hi heat just until pink and opaque - it only takes a few minutes, so don’t walk away and overcook them!
Freshly grate really good parmesan on top - buy this in a block and buy the good stuff…Parmigiano Reggiano. The Italians take their cheese seriously, so this is totally worth it. We like to bite into pieces of the cheese for maximum flavor so we often use a vegetable peeler for shards of parmesan.
Level it up with homemade croutons if you have AC or the stamina to tolerate turning on the stovetop for 5 minutes if you don’t!
Finish with a grind of fresh cracked pepper
Shortcut Caesar dressing
NOTE: real caesar salad contains coddled egg and anchovies - I leave out both because a.) I’m lazy and b.) I find anchovies creepy. I up the Worcestershire a tad to compensate.
1/2 c olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of one lemon
~1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup grated parmesan
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Mix all the ingredients in a jar and shake to blend or use an immersion blender.
OR
Creamy Caesar with Feta
This has been a staple in our family for many years. It is super easy and consistently gets rave reviews! The feta adds a salty creamy note. Keep an emergency bottle of it in the fridge for an easy, decadent side salad, or top the salad with the protein of your choice - shrimp, beef, chicken, salmon…and call it an entree!
1 Cup olive oil
2 Tbsp feta cheese (or more!), crumbled
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Juice of one lemon (or to taste)
Salt and fresh ground pepper
Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth. Lazy gourmet hack: put a piece of cling wrap over the bowl before attaching the top section - it keeps the top pieces clean so you only have to clean the bowl and blade!
Alternatively you can use a stick blender to mix the ingredients.
Homemade Croutons
Cube whatever bread you have on hand. Lazy Gourmet Tip: We cube any bread we have going stale and store it in the freezer for just this purpose - it goes from the freezer to the frying pan!
Add bread cubes to a frying pan and drizzle with olive oil, tossing to coat.
Toss with salt and pepper )or any other dried herbs - a little garlic powder or Herbs de Provence can be a nice optional addition.
Toast over med hi heat until browned.
Toss frequently to prevent burning. When golden brown, remove from heat and turn into a bowl lined with a paper towel to cool.
Taste test one. Try not to eat them ALL before dinner. Hide them from the rest of the family.
Easy peasy, done in 5 minutes and SO much better than those tooth-cracking cardboard chunks in the box!
Stay Cool and Enjoy!
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