Grilled Portobello Mushroom Salad

I love a good mushroom. Portobellos are my fave. They are just so meaty and tasty. Why not make a salad where they are the star?!

With LOVE from Texas,
The Pint-Sized Mayo

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Salad

2 Servings

Ingredients:

• 2 large portobello mushrooms, de-stemmed and cleaned
• 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, freshly ground
• 1/2 pound turkey Italian sausage, crumbled and cooked (optional)
• 1 heart of romaine lettuce, roughly chopped
• 1 roma tomato, diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, julienned
• 1/4 cup yellow onion, sliced
• 2 ounces of small fresh mozzarella balls (the bite sized ones), halved

Ingredients for a simple lemon dressing:

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Directions:

Cut off the stem and clean your portobello mushroom caps.

In a shallow bowl or dish, add the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, black pepper, and salt. Whisk together until your marinade is well combined.

Add your portobellos to the marinade and allow to soak for a few minutes on each side (I did 5 minutes for each side.).

While you wait for the mushrooms to soak in the marinade goodness, brown the turkey Italian sausage in a small pan (if you choose to add this to the salad).

There are a few ways to cook the mushrooms. You can either grill them outside, use a panini press, or pan grill them. I have a panini press pan for the stove so that’s what I used (mostly for the beautiful grill marks ;)). Do not dump out the marinade quite yet.

After you have marinated your mushrooms, place them on grill pan. Cook them for 4-6 minutes on each side.

While the mushrooms cook, work on the simple dressing. Place all ingredients in a bowl or measuring cup. Whisk until they are mixed well. Set aside until you are ready to serve.

Once the mushrooms have cooked, drunk them in the marinade and allow them to cool on a cutting board for a few minutes.

Prepare your serving plates by layering the lettuce, tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, mozzarella, and Italian sausage. Slice the cooled mushrooms, and arrange them on top of the salad.

Drizzle with the prepared dressing, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!!

“A lucky man can stumble upon a treasure while an unlucky one can’t even find a mushroom.” – Russian Proverb