It’s kind of a funny paradox. In summertime, even though there are many more hours of sunlight than in fall or winter, I find myself tending towards ultra simple fare when menu planning. You might think since there are more daylight hours, I wouldn’t mind spending a little more time in the kitchen, but instead I want to soak up every moment of fun that we can. Whether we’re going on walks, swimming, working in the garden (AKA spraying each other with the hose), exercising, or just sitting outside eating popsicles, any outdoor activity takes priority. With our desire for simple meals combined with summer’s bounty of produce, some form of salad makes our menu at least twice a week.
Recently Josie posted this chopped grilled summer vegetable salad and I was all about it. She teased it on Instagram and I was instantly pestering her to find out when she would post the recipe. I made it within days of her post and we all loved it, as expected. The next week when menu planning I considered making it again, and was also planning on my favorite grilled chicken fajitas one night. Light bulb. Throwing everything for the fajitas onto the grill along with some romaine was much simpler than making tortillas, especially for a weeknight meal. I made a quick chipotle lime dressing to go with the salad and sprinkled with some cotija. We loved this seasonal riff on one of our all time favorite meals. Thanks for the inspiration, Josie!