Grilled romaine salad by Twin Eagles partner Heartbeet Kitchen

Spring greens, but make ‘em grilled. Twin Eagles Partner Heartbeet Kitchen comes to us today with her simple Italian grilled romaine salad recipe, plus some Bobby Flay-inspired lettuce grilling tips.

It may sound counterintuitive, but the sear infuses the lettuce with a subtle smokiness and creates crispy, ruffled edges with a tender inside. It makes the perfect easy side for almost any meal. Check out the steps below.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when grilling a head of lettuce:

1. Most important: slice the head of lettuce vertically, or lengthwise. This keeps the leaves connected to the core, thus your leaves staying together, nice and firm.
   
   
2. Make sure the grill grates are clean and brush them with oil.
   
   
3. Turn the grill to medium high heat. This will give the lettuce those beautiful sear marks and infuse a sweet smokiness.
   
   
4. Sprinkle with fresh lemon juice. This is key to making the natural flavors of the lettuce sing, and brightens the entire dish.

 

Ingredients

2 heads of fresh and firm romaine lettuce, cut vertically (you will have 4 halves)

3 tablespoons olive oil

kosher salt, divided

black pepper

one medium lemon, cut in half

fresh parmesan cheese

 

Instructions

1. Make sure grates of grill are clean and turn to medium high.
   
   
2. Brush lettuce halves liberally with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, cut side and back side. Then sprinkle each halve with some salt.
   
   
3. Grill for 3 minutes, cut side down, pressing with your tongs to make sure the lettuce gets a good sear. Flip and grill for one or 2 more minutes.
   
   
4. Remove from grill. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper, drizzle with remaining olive oil. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over each half. Top with a tablespoon of parmesan on each half.