Great Grilled Vegetables
Pareve|Norene GilletzThis recipe is kosher for passover
please consult the ou's guidelines for checking fruits and vegetables >
- “Veg-out” at your next barbecue with this easy Mediterranean-style dish.
- Source: Norene’s Healthy Kitchen
Ingredients
- 1 large red onion, sliced in rings (e.g., Vidalia)
- 3 colored bell peppers (red, orange or yellow), cut in chunks
- 2 cups mushrooms, halved (or 8 portabella mushrooms)
- 1 small eggplant, ends trimmed, sliced into ½-inch thick rounds
- 2 zucchini and/or yellow squash, trimmed, sliced diagonally 1/2-inch thick
- 1 bunch asparagus spears, ends trimmed
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed (about 4 teaspoons minced)
- ¼ cup olive oil (preferably extra-virgin)
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup lightly packed chopped fresh basil (see Note)
- 1 Tablespoon fresh oregano (see Note)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine onions, peppers, mushrooms, zucchini and asparagus.
- Add garlic, olive oil and vinegar or lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper; mix well.
- Marinate at least 30 minutes (or cover and refrigerate overnight).
- Transfer vegetables to a perforated grill basket, reserving any leftover marinade. (If you don’t have a grilling basket, use heavy-duty foil that has been slashed in several places.)
- Grill over medium-high heat for 15 minutes, or until nicely browned, stirring two or three times.
- Remove from grill and transfer vegetable mixture to a large bowl.
- Add reserved marinade, basil, and oregano. Mix well.
- Note: If using dried basil and oregano instead of fresh, add them to the vegetable mixture before marinating, along with the salt and pepper. Thyme and rosemary also make flavorful seasonings.
Kashrut Instructions
GREEN ASPARAGUS:
DESCRIPTION: Asparagus contains beetles and thrips. Thrips are primarily found under the triangle scales and somewhat less frequently in the tips of the asparagus. INSPECTION:- Shave down the floret at the asparagus tip.
- Remove the triangle parts along the side of the asparagus. (A potato peeler is recommended.)
- Wash thoroughly.
FRESH HERBS:
DESCRIPTION: Fresh chives, basil, cilantro, dill, mint, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, and thyme are often used as spices or garnishing. Please Note: Curly leaf parsley is very difficult to check. It is therefore recommended that only flat leaf parsley be used. INFESTATION: Aphids, thrips and other insects may often be found on the leaves and stems of these herbs. Insects tend to nestle in the crevices between the leaves and branches of herbs. These insects can curl up and stick to the leaf once they come in contact with water. Vegetable spinners, power hoses, and light boxes are not always available in the home. We therefore recommend the following alternate procedure. RECOMMENDATION: In order to determine if a particular bunch of herbs is infested prior to washing, bang it several times over a white cloth. This is most important when checking oregano, rosemary, sage and thyme. If only one or two insects are found proceed with the steps below. If three or more insects are detected in a particular bunch of herbs it should not be used. INSPECTION:- Soak herbs in a solution of cold water and vegetable wash. The proper amount of vegetable wash has been added when some bubbles are observed in the water. (In the absence of vegetable wash, several drops of concentrated unscented liquid detergent may be used. However, for health reasons, care must be taken to thoroughly rinse off the soapy solution.)
- Agitate the herbs in the soapy water, in order to loosen the sticking excretion of the bugs.
- Using a heavy stream of water, thoroughly wash off the soap and other foreign matter from the herbs.
- Check both sides of each leaf under direct light.
- If one or two insects are found, rewash the herbs.
- If any insects are found after repeating the agitation process twice, the entire bunch must be discarded.
