Grilled Shrimp and Bread Salad

Anytime I can make bread the main part of my meal, I’m all in. So when I saw this recipe for a grilled bread salad, well, it was on our table within 48 hours. I really don’t know why it took that long. Man, was this good!

As salads go, this is one of the best main course salads we’ve had in some time, and we eat quite a lot of salad around here. It’s just a wondrous collection of flavors and textures, and grilled stuff. I added romaine and sliced avocado to the mix, but why I didn’t think to grill the avocado first, again, I don’t know. That would have been awesome, and I’ll do it next time.

As I mentioned, I sort of veered from the original recipe a bit, but it really did seem to need grounding with some lettuce and a creamy avocado presence, and both of those things made this really work. It also called for torn up pita bread, but I wanted some big chunks of Italian bread, and that was a good call.

But don’t do what I did and cut your bread into little cubes and then try to grill it… not my finest or most intelligent moment to date. Just grill your bread and THEN cut it up… duh.

If you’ve got your items all prepped and your grill ready, you can have this put together in no time. With the adult beverage of your choice, I’d say you would be set for one fan-freakin-tastic summer meal.

Grilled Bread and Shrimp Salad

Click here for a printable recipe

Recipe adapted from Relish Magazine

4 tablespoons lemon juice

4 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional for brushing

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano

1 garlic clove, minced

¾ teaspoon salt, divided

Coarsely ground black pepper

1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut into halves

½ English cucumber, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces

½ small red onion, thinly sliced

4 cups chopped romaine lettuce

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

3 large (1- inch thick) slices of bread cut from a rustic Italian loaf

1 orange bell pepper, cut into strips

3 ounces feta cheese, cut into ½-inch cubes

6 8-inch bamboo or metal skewers (soak the bamboo skewers in water for 15 minutes)

Prepare grill or grill pan.

Whisk together the lemon juice, oil, oregano, garlic, ½ teaspoon salt and pepper in a bowl. Pour half the dressing into a second bowl.

Add tomatoes, cucumber and onion to dressing in one bowl.

Add shrimp to dressing in second bowl. Stir until well coated; marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Lightly brush the bread and bell pepper on both sides with oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Grill the bread until browned and slightly crisp, about 2 minutes on each side then transfer to a rack to cool. Grill the bell pepper until just softened, about 2 minutes per side. Cut the bread into cubes and set aside.

Thread shrimp on skewers without crowding and grill until just cooked, about 2 minutes on each side.

Remove the shrimp from skewers and gently stir into tomato mixture. In a large serving bowl, combine the shrimp with the bread and bell pepper, lettuce and feta.

Serves 4