On Tuesday, August 18th, Grillocracy's Clint Cantwell visited WREG-TV in Memphis to fire up some tasty summertime fare as part of his monthly grilling "how to" series.

Among the recipes featured were the smoked bacon wrapped meatball appetizers known as MOINK balls (you can find the recipe here), grilled and chilled gazpacho soup (you can find the recipe here), and this brand spankin' new recipe for grilled hearts of romaine with smoky (eggless) Caesar dressing and fire toasted sourdough croutons.  Enjoy!

GRILLED ROMAINE HEARTS WITH SMOKY CAESAR DRESSING AND FIRE TOASTED CROUTONS

Ingredients

3-4 hearts of romaine, halved lengthwise

1 loaf sourdough bread, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Smoky Caesar dressing (recipe follows)

1/4 cup shaved parmesan cheese

Additional Tools

1 vegetable grilling basket

Instructions

Prepare grill for medium-high heat, approximately 400 degrees.  Place cubed sourdough in a large mixing bowl and toss with olive oil and garlic powder until fully coated.  Add bread cubes to a vegetable grilling basket and place it on the grill.  Allow the bread to grill until lightly toasted on all sides, stirring them frequently to ensure even cooking.  Remove the croutons from the grill and set aside until ready to use. 

Place the halved hearts of romaine on the grill cut side down.  Allow them to grill for 3-4 minutes, moving them every minute until nicely charred.  

Remove the romaine from the grill and refrigerate immediately for at least 5 minutes to stop further wilting.  To plate, place 1-2 romaine halves on a plate charred side up.  Drizzle with smoky Caesar dressing, add fire toasted sourdough croutons, and top with shaved parmesan. 

SMOKY EGGLESS CAESAR DRESSING

Ingredients

2 tbsp. mayonnaise 

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. Dijon mustard

2 tsp. finely minced anchovies

1 tsp. smoked paprika

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup grated parmesan

1/4 ground black pepper

Instructions 

Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and whisk well until the ingredients are fully combined and the dressing is smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until ready to use.