Going Veggie on the Grill

Whoops, I guess I promised a salmon recipe, but tonight's dinner was so yummy that it made me forget!

It's hot here - not as hot as other parts of the country, but hot for this neck of the woods - so I've planned dinner around grilling outdoors. When we grill, I often automatically think meat or seafood, but this summer I'd like to play around with a few more vegetarian recipes, if possible.

When we eat out, I often gravitate toward vegetarian dishes, especially for lunch or when I order sandwiches. One of my favorites is a well-executed portobello mushroom sandwich, but many places seem to miss the mark on these, so I decided to try one on my own. I scoured Epicurious and found several tasty recipes like this one, this one and this one, and even though I didn't really follow any of the recipes exactly, I took ideas from each one and decided to wing it.

Portobello Mushroom Burgers with Fontina and Arugula

Mmmm...it was yummy. We all would have liked there to have been more mushroom relative to the large rolls, but that would be hard to do unless we put two mushrooms on the sandwich. I bought very large portobellos, but they do cook down quite a bit. The red pepper mayo was delicious, but a bit runny, so it needs a little tweaking. All of the flavors melded perfectly together and I was in heaven. Who needs meat?

White Bean and Tomato Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

For some reason, the portobello burgers cried out for a bean dish, so I served the "burgers" with a white bean and tomato salad dressed with balsamic, lemon and Dijon. The flavors paired nicely with the burger and the beans added a little heft and bulk to the meal.

A lovely light vegetarian meal for a hot summer day.

And I'll try to remember that salmon recipe..............