Grilled Balsamic Zucchini Bites

Is it just me or does everything taste better with balsamic on it? Seriously, I use it for everything from salad dressings to marinades and sauces, and it always adds just the right flavor. For example, one simple grilling trick my brother taught me is to marinade vegetables in balsamic before throwing them on the grill.

One variation of this that results in a delicious side dish is zucchini sliced into thin strips lengthwise, dipped in balsamic, and grilled. (By the way, I still have yet to find a reasonable way to cut zucchini into thin strips lengthwise without occasionally putting my fingers in danger. Please enlighten me if you know how.)

I was making this zucchini dish the other day when we were grilling burgers and was trying to think about how I could make it more fancy - like something you could do as appetizers at a party. It definitely needed more color and I thought it would be nice to have an additional flavor that would compliment the balsamic flavor.

I decided that goat cheese and roasted red pepper would do the trick. Since we already had the grill running, I did a roasted red pepper on the grill. To make it easier to eat, I rolled the zucchini up around the cheese and pepper and stuck a toothpick in. The result? Excellent! The goat cheese and balsamic flavors really go together very nicely. The roasted red pepper added color, without taking away from the other flavors.

One thing that I might try next time is to actually blend some roasted red pepper and some other spices with the goat cheese to make a spread. Also, since it's a little time consuming to roll each appetizer, next time I'll try to have everything portioned out and ready to roll before the zucchini comes off the grill.

Here's what it looks like:




And here's the recipe:

Grilled Balsamic Zucchini Bites
(makes appetizer potion for 4)

Roasted red pepper:
1 red pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil

Grilled zucchini:
3 zucchini, cut into thin (1/8 inch thick) lengthwise slices
balsamic vinegar, enough to coat zucchini, about half a cup
salt and pepper, to taste

goat cheese, one small package
toothpicks

For the roasted red pepper, poke some holes in the pepper with a fork. Then coat the outside with olive oil. Finally, put on the grill, rotating periodically, until the outside is fully blackened. It will take about 15-20 minutes.

After taking the pepper off the grill, put it in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it sit for 5 minutes. After that, the skin will peel off easily. Cut it in half, removing the seeds and the skin. Then cut into thin strips. Cut the strips into pieces so that each piece is about the width of the zucchini.

For the zucchini, line up as many slices as you can fit on a plate. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and make sure they are fully coated by flipping them over a few times. Season all slices liberally with salt and pepper, flip, and do the same on the other side. Stack these slices on the side and repeat with another layer until all slices are done.

Grill the zucchini slices for a couple minutes on each side, until they develop a nice golden color. Adjust the cooking time to the thickness of the slices. They should be very soft, but not blackened.

Prepare all the ingredients in an assembly line to put together the rolls. Take each piece of zucchini and place a piece of red pepper and a dollop of goat cheese at one end. Roll the zucchini starting at that end. Finally, stick in a toothpick to hold it all together.

Enjoy!