Is it summer yet?

As I sit here looking outside at the 1C (34F) reading on our thermometer and the patches of snow scattered randomly about the sidewalk, I long for long hot summer days and barbeques, especially when I called home tonight and was told with glee that it was a glorious, sunny 70F day in San Francisco. My friend was walking barefoot in the park and trying unsuccessfully to keep his son from feeding the ducks his bag of spicy cheetos. 

One of my favorite things to barbeque, besides a big juicy burger, is fingerling potatoes (more on that recipe later) and vegetables.  I am not a big raw veggie person for no other reason than I am allergic to a good number of raw vegetables including carrots and celery. They are ironically enough the number one diet food on the planet except of course for France where the diet vegetable of choice is now the lovely LEEK, courtesy of Mme Guiliano and her infamous French Women Don't Get Fat diatribe. But once the offending veggies are cooked through, I'm good to go, so I love to throw them on the grill.  I use my little George Foreman in the winter months or if I am making a lot, like in the above picture, my large grill pan.  Just toss the veggies in olive oil, salt & pepper, get the pan (or bbq) really hot, then grill to your heart's content.  Once you set them on the grill, don't move them around as they will stick and tear.  Let them brown and caramelize and get grill marks, then move them.  Is it summer yet?

Comments

[pipstar]

Oh I love grilled vegetables with a little olive oil -and a bit of parmesan for broccoli :-)

[Jason Stone]

This winter has been miserable. I just read a blog from someone who lives in the southwest of France, where it is supposed to be warm all the time, and they said everyone is running out of firewood.

Mmmmmm. I can't wait to grill some vegetables.

[Melissa]

Perfect looking! What kind of grill pan do you use? -also- What is the round veg in the lower lefthand corner, pumpkin?
Off to buy a grill pan!
Melissa

[keiko]

Hi there, I've just discovered your site and it's gorgeous! I love grilled vegtables, it's not even spring in England though... I Look forward to your coming posts!

[laura @ cucina testa rossa]

Melissa - I use a La Creuset grill pan that I bought for a song at a garage sale! they are ridiculously expensive in the store so I am embarrassed to say what I paid for mine. The round green veg is an acorn squash and fennel in the center. I cut the squash a bit too thick so I had to pop it in the oven and roast it to finish the cooking as if I left it on the grill it would have burned it.

Jason - fire up the grill, i should be home soon!

Pipster - great idea on the parm! maybe with a few drops of balsamic! yum!!!

Thanks Keiko! It's pretty darn cold down here in Paris too so any outdoor grilling is unfortunately out for both of us for a while...