Grilled Italian Vegetables

Before coming to Italy, I actually wasn't a huge fan of vegetables, especially eggplant. But I have been converted! Something about the simplicity of how they prepare their vegetables but also the quality of the vegetables and the amazing, pure olive oil that is used for them as well. You can definitely smell and taste the difference in the quality of the olive oil. This is a very easy dish to make, healthy, and also very tasteful. It goes great on a sandwich, if you want to make a vege panini (just add some arugula and voila!), or even with your choice of deli meat, or with rustic bread as a side dish.

Grilled Italian Vegetables (Verdure Grigliata)

1 red bell pepper

1 eggplant

1 zucchini

1 clove garlic minced

olive oil

salt

white wine vinegar (optional)

capers (optional)

oregano (optional)

1. Place a grill pan on the stove and let it heat up.

2. Drizzle on some olive oil and then place the vegetables on the pan.

3. Once one side is cooked and has nice grill marks, flip them over to cook the other side.

4. Once they are done cooking, place on a plate in layers.

5. For each layer drizzle a little more olive oil, salt to taste and some minced garlic.

6. Repeat this for however many layers you have.

Then you can stop right there and have a delicious and healthy meal. However, to spruce up the flavors a little more, and if you like a little sour kick to your dishes, do the following:

7. For the red bell peppers, drizzle a little bit of white wine vinegar, throw on a small spoonful of capers and oregano. (If you do decide to put capers, no need to put salt since the capers are salty). Then mix.

8. For the eggplant and zucchini, you can also drizzle on a little bit of white wine vinegar for a little kick.

And there you have it! Very simple. Of course, it is always best to make this dish when the vegetables are in season as you will get the best taste out of them. And if you prefer one vege over another, you can just choose one of your favorites to make. Hope you like! =)