Summer Shrimp and Charred Corn Panzanella Salad

summer shrimp salad

Sometimes it’s even too hot to grill outdoors, such was the case when this salad was made. When temperatures are high in the 90’s, a nice light and fresh salad always makes for a great meal.

Shrimp, charred corn, summer tomatoes are the key ingredients in this salad, along with toasted ciabatta croutons along and a few other ingredients with some fresh herbs.

shrimp salad

All you need is a cool drink alongside when eating this salad and I guarantee you’ll be totally satisfied.

ingredients for shrimp salad

I like to slice up my tomatoes and let them sit in some olive oil until the juices mingle together while I get the other ingredients gathered.  I opted to put my oven on and roast up my shrimp and crisp up the bread cubes, but you can certainly use your air fryer or grill them outside if it’s not unbearable heat like I had.

charred corn

I even charred the corn inside right over my stove burners!

summer salad

I used a light vinaigrette for the dressing but even a fresh lemon and olive oil dressing would be delicious too. I hope you enjoy this shrimp and charred corn panzanella salad on these last hot, humid days of summer!

5.0 from 1 reviews
Summer Shrimp and Charred Corn Panzanella Salad
 
A delicious, light and satisfying shrimp salad for these dog days of summer!
Author:
Ingredients
  • 1- lb. of shrimp, cleaned and deveined and patted dry
  • 2 ears of corn, charred
  • 3 Persian cucumbers, sliced
  • red onion
  • olives
  • tomatoes
  • avocado
  • parsley
  • basil
  • ciabatta bread cubes
  • vinaigrette
Instructions
  1. pre-heat oven to 400.
  2. Cube up your bread, as much as you want, I do a whole loaf and save the leftovers, then toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, bake unil golden then remove the croutons and set aside.
  3. Toss your shrimp in olive oil, chopped parsley, granulated garlic, salt, pepper and paprika, roast in the same pan you did the bread cubes. Roast til pink.
  4. Char the corn directly on the stove burners, of if you have an electric stove right into a frying pan, remember you can use your grill or air fryer if the weather is suitable for you, then when cooled cut the kernels off, set aside.
  5. No measurements for how many tomatoes you want to use, just slice them and let the juices mingle with some olive oil in a nice big serving bowl while preparing the other ingredients.
  6. avocado sliced along with the red onion, olives whatever amounts you like.
  7. Assemble all the ingredients into your platter or serving bowl, placing the shrimp all around with the corn and the crispy croutons and other ingredients, then toss in your herbs.
  8. Spoon the vinaigrette all over.
  9. Vinaigrette:
  10. one quarter cup red wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar
  11. three quarter cup of good extra virgin olive oil
  12. a dollop of dijon mustard
  13. salt and pepper to taste
  14. a pinch of oregano and a pinch of granulated garlic
  15. shake, shake, shake until well combined

 

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Berry Salad with Leafy Greens and Balls of Fresh Mozzarella

fresh berry. salad

This fresh berry salad is bright and flavorful and pretty to look at because of all the vibrant colors. It’s a showstopper salad to serve at your next big party or get- together. It literally goes with so many things you might have as a main course.

You might think, “fruit in a salad?” I’m here to say, “Oh yes!”

berry salad ingredients

Beautiful leafy greens are the base for this salad along with juicy, ripe fresh blueberries and strawberries. Creamy avocado, crisp cucumbers and red onion along with balls of bocconcini, fresh mozzarella. For the crunch factor there’s candied pecans and pepitas.

berries and mozzarella balls

Present this salad in one of your biggest bowls or prettiest platters and it will be the talk of the party when you bring it out.

Always dress it right before serving with a homemade vinaigrette, don’t use that bottled stuff!

Enjoy

5.0 from 1 reviews
Berry Salad with Leafy Greens and Balls of Fresh Mozzarella
 
A showstopper summer salad to serve for your summer parties. and get-togethers.
Author:
Ingredients
  • The ingredient amounts are not listed, just go with the flow according how big your salad will be.
  • ****************
  • leafy greens for the base
  • fresh strawberries, sliced into quarters
  • fresh blueberries
  • bocconcini balls or pearl size fresh mozzarella
  • red onion
  • avocado, diced
  • cucumbers, seeds scooped out and sliced
  • candied pecans and pepitas, please find these, it goes so well
Instructions
  1. Place the base of the leafy greens into a beautiful big bowl or platter.
  2. Then arrange all the rest of the ingredients all around.
  3. Spoon the balsamic vinaigrette all around at the last minute before serving, salt and pepper to taste.
  4. **************
  5. HOMEMADE BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE
  6. /2 cups good olive oil
  7. /2 cup of a quality balsamic vinegar
  8. small garlic clove, grated
  9. a dollop of dijon mustard
  10. salt and pepper
  11. Shake it all together in a jar and taste for your liking, you can add a little honey if you want but I find that a good quality rich balsamic vinegar has sweetness to it and there's no need for it.

 

Signature

Summertime Orzo Salad

summer orzo salad

Spring is officially here and the warmer weather has arrived and so has grilling season. I know you can grill all year long but I much prefer doing it in the warmer weather. This orzo salad is the perfect side dish to anything you’ll be putting on your grill.

orzo pasta

It’s bright, fresh, colorful, easy to serve, and great for summer parties because you can leave it out and eat it at room temp and you don’t have to worry about it spoiling.

pasta salad

You might want to throw some colored bell peppers on the grill and cook them ahead before you assemble this salad. I usually grill a red, yellow and  orange pepper ahead of time, a day or two before, the grilled peppers really give the salad a nice flavor.

grilling shrimp

And like I said this orzo salad goes with anything you put on the grill from seafood, veggies, pork, beef and chicken.

grilling chicken

This will be your go to summer entertaining salad and side dish, hope you enjoy!

Summertime Orzo Salad
 
This orzo salad is your go to summer side dish and salad with whatever you're grilling outside.
Author:
Ingredients
  • LIST OF INGREDIENTS, YOU CAN USE MORE OR LESS, DON"T WORRY ABOUT EXACT AMOUNTS.
  • 1 lb. orzo pasta, cooked and drained and cooled
  • 1 red yellow and orange bell peppers, grilled then diced
  • a mix of green castelvetrano and either nicoise or kalamata olives, you can slice them in half
  • 1 can of chick peas, drained and rinsed
  • ½ can or so of canned artichoke hearts, drained
  • red onion, chopped
  • feta cheese, crumbled
  • 1 or 2 handfuls of arugula
  • lemon wedges for garnish
Instructions
  1. Toss everything together in a big bowl, adjusting for salt and pepper.
  2. FOR THE DRESSING
  3. /4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
  4. small grated garlic clove
  5. teaspoon of dijon mustard
  6. /3 to ½ cup of olive oil
  7. salt and pepper to taste
  8. Place in a jar and shake or whisk it all together until it all emulsifies
  9. You can double the dressing if you like if you don't have enough

 

Signature

Grilled Eggplant With Fresh Tomato Salad

grilled eggplant

I can’t think of a more enjoyable salad to make during the warm summer months ahead than this grilled eggplant with fresh tomato salad.

It’s fun to serve for picnics, BBQ’s and any of your upcoming parties you’re planning. All I can say is that whenever I make this and lay it out on a buffet table people gravitate right towards it, not only is it super delicious, it has a pretty presentation and as an added bonus it holds up very well at room temperature.

charred eggplant

Grilling eggplant is so easy, just salt, pepper and olive oil both sides, place on the grill until tender with nice looking grill marks.

I like to look for medium size more slender eggplant rather than the rounder fatter kind, to me there’s less seeds, less bitterness. I also like to peel the skin off in strips, using a vegetable peeler go around the whole eggplant lengthwise making “zebra stripes”. If you take the skin completely off, the eggplant slices collapse and have no structure.

You can even grill up the eggplant the day before, then all you have to do is make your salad and assemble it all on serving day.

eggplant and tomato salad

Fan your grilled eggplant unto a pretty platter and then proceed to make your fresh tomato salad. Mine consisted of sliced cherry tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, red onions, olives, feta cheese, parsley, basil and olive oil. Here’s were you can add your own twist on it, you can replace the feta with any special cheese you like, I’ve changed it up many times myself by using provolone chunks, fresh mozzarella chunks, or even those cute little mozzarella pearls

grilled salad

Once you make this grilled eggplant salad I think it will become a regular for you throughout the summer months.

Enjoy!

Signature

Grilled Seafood Salad

summer seafood salad This grilled seafood salad is one of my all time favorites for light casual summer eating, it’s a combination of shrimp, scallops and calamari which lay on top of mixed greens and crunchy vegetables, it’s all tossed in a lemon vinaigrette that’s spiked with a little limoncello, which gives the dressing that extra zing!

All the seafood can be grilled ahead of time and then the salad can be composed at the last minute so it’s perfect for entertaining. Add some crusty bread and a bottle of wine and I promise you’ll be in for a scrumptious treat!

Lagostina round grill pan

I used this beautiful new grill pan I got, but any grill pan will do.

stove topped grilled seafood Quite honestly I don’t like grilling delicate seafood directly on top of the grates on my out door grill unless it’s on a plank or something to hold them secure, because with out fail something always falls between the grates and I have to try and pick it out before it burns, so I’ve always used an indoor grill pan for this grilled seafood salad.

I already own a heavy cast iron grill pan with a popular name that I thought I would use much more than I do, but it’s a pain to clean. I end up boiling water in it to loosen up the food that gets stuck between the grates then I have to take my time using a plastic scraper to try and remove it all, like I said it’s a pain!

stove topped grilled seafood .

summer grilled seafood salad Fresh, easy and pretty enough for a summer party, picnic or any get together of friends or family!

summer grilled seafood salad Arrange everything on a big platter with crusty bread all around and some of the grilled lemons and you’ll be sure to impress your guests.

 

 

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4.9 from 71 reviews
Grilled Seafood Salad
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • Amounts will very according to your seafood preference, this is just an estimate on what I used for 4 servings.
  • SEAFOOD
  • 8 large shrimp, tails off
  • 8 oz. sea scallops
  • 1 lb. of calamari ( I leave the bodies whole and cut into rings later, it's easier
  • SEAFOOD MARINADE
  • 4 cloves of chopped garlic
  • the zest of 1 big lemon
  • a handful of chopped parsley
  • salt and pepper
  • drizzled olive oil to coat seafood
  • 2 lemons, cut into slices for grilling
  • SALAD
  • 2 fennel bulbs, sliced thin
  • 1 bunch of celery hearts with the leaves, chopped
  • 5 radishes, sliced thin
  • a handful of capers
  • assorted olives, sliced
  • cherry tomatoes, sliced
  • For the greens I used a mix of water cress and arugula,(mostly arugula)
  • LEMON AND OLIVE OIL DRESSING
  • 1 part lemon juice ( with a splash of limoncello, optional) to 3 parts extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
  1. Make sure all seafood has been padded dry before you marinade them, you should have no added moisture.
  2. Place all seafood in a glass bowl with all the marinade ingredients, toss and let it sit for 40 minutes.
  3. Grill all your seafood, which can be grilled up to a day ahead, let it cool down then refrigerate them separately, if you're doing them ahead, not all mixed together. Either way seafood should not be warm or hot for this salad, room temp or cold.
  4. Whisk up your dressing and set aside.
  5. When you're ready to compose your salad slice the scallops into quarters or in half according to their size.
  6. Cut calamari bodies into rings.
  7. Leave shrimp whole and the calamari legs.
  8. In a separate large bowl toss all salad ingredients together except for the seafood, you can add more or less or any other ingredient you would like to add, there is no exact rule with a salad.
  9. Add and toss your dressing, less is more, don't drench it, taste as you go.
  10. Grab a huge platter, place salad on top, arrange all the seafood on top of the greens, add in some grilled lemons slices.
  11. Don't forget toasted or grilled crunchy bread, it's a must!

 

 

Signature