Grilled Vegetable Skewers

Having trouble getting your kids to eat their vegetables? This recipe may help.

-Recipe Courtesy of Top 100 Finger Foods by Annabel Karmel, amazon.com

Make vegetables more attractive to your kids by grilling and marinating them in a balsamic vinaigrette. These skewers are also great to serve as an appetizer or to cut up and add to a pasta or salad dish.

Makes 4 skewers

Ingredients:

1 large red bell pepper

1 large yellow or orange bell pepper

1/2 medium green zucchini

1/2 medium yellow squash (or more zucchini if unavailable)

4 wooden skewers, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes

Ingredients for the Marinade:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

salt and pepper to season

Preparation:

1. Cut off the tops of the bell peppers and remove the cores and seeds. Cut into rings. Slice 4 circles from each squash, approximately 1/4 inch thick, and cut each circle across in half to give 8 semicircles each of green and yellow squash.

2. Put the marinade ingredients into a medium bowl and whisk together, seasoning to taste with the salt and pepper. Add the vegetables and toss to coat. Marinate for a minimum of 2 hours, or overnight, stirring the vegetables occasionally.

3. Preheat the broiler and line a broiler pan with foil. Thread pieces of bell pepper and squash onto the skewers. Put the skewers on the foil and brush with some of the remaining marinade. Broil for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften around the edges. Watch carefully, as they can brown very quickly if they are too close to the heat source.

4. Turn the skewers over and brush with more marinade. Broil for 4-5 minutes more, until the vegetables are cooked through. Again watch carefully; you want the vegetables to brown without burning. The skewers can also be grilled over medium-hot coals.

5. Allow the skewers to cool slightly before serving. Leftover vegetables can be removed from the skewers and stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 2 days.

For more recipes similar to this one, check out our Recipe File.