We’re definitely into the dog days of summer. Have you been enjoying the weather? For me, this really hot weather almost keeps me out of the kitchen… almost. I’ve held off on turning the oven on most nights the past few weeks and opted to cook out on the grill instead. It’s easy and I love putting together simple, tasty and fresh sides to round out our meals like this Italian Green Bean & Tomato Salad.
Simple Summer Dinner sides are made even more delicious when they come from your very own garden. Fresh and tender green beans along with colorful sweet grape tomatoes are tossed with freshly grated Parmesan and a homemade Italian Vinaigrette dressing in this flavorful salad.
One of the things I love about summer is how easy it is to “eat the rainbow” and get in your daily fruit & vegetable dietary requirements.
But if you don’t have your own garden, that’s no problem! Your local farm stand, farmer’s market or even grocery store should have these summer favorites available this time of year in their produce section.
Start this recipe by preparing the dressing. Add your red wine vinegar, garlic and spices to a blender and combine well. Slowly drizzle in your extra virgin olive oil and store the vinaigrette in a glass dressing bottle or container. Set aside.
Next, trim and cut your beans into thirds and rinse them. Blanch the beans for 3-4 minutes and then remove them to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. This gives the beans a bright green color, makes them slightly tender, while still keeping them fresh & crisp.
Rinse and then quarter your grape tomatoes and place them into your favorite glass serving dish.
Add the green beans to the bowl of tomatoes, add the Italian Vinaigrette, the Parmesan cheese and toss well.
Cover the salad with plastic wrap, and let it marinate for at least 2 hours at room temperature.
Bring this dish to your next summer get together or serve it along with your family’s favorite grilled meats for a simple but delicious meal this season!
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 3 cups fresh green beans, trimmed, cut into thirds, rinsed and blanched for 3-4 minutes, then placed into ice water
- 1 1/2 cups red grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1 1/2 cups orange grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1 cup grated Parmesan or Italian Blend cheese
- 1 cup homemade Italian Vinaigrette or your favorite bottled Italian Vinaigrette
- Simple Homemade Italian Vinaigrette Recipe
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 3/4 tsp. sea salt
- 3/4 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. paprika
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp. ground mustard
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup red wine vinager
- 1/4 cup water
- 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Makes 1 1/2 cups of dressing
Instructions
- If making your own vinaigrette- Prepare the Italian Vinaigrette Dressing by combining the ingredients in a small blender or food processor and set aside.
- Blanch your green beans for 3-4 minutes, then cool in ice water, drain and set aside.
- Add your quartered tomatoes to your favorite medium glass serving dish.
- Add the beans, Italian Vinaigrette Dressing, freshly grated cheese and toss everything together well.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let it marinade for at least 2 hours at room temperature.
- Serve with your favorite grilled meats for a simple summer dinner.
- Serves 8.
- Enjoy!
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