The blue cheese wedge salad reinvented. During the summer, we can’t get enough salads. Pull out the grill and skip the iceberg. It’s amazing how a little heat and char from the grill elevates ordinary (yet highly nutritious) green cabbage into a salad you will crave. Whisk together a California Dried Fig and herb dressing to pour over each grilled cabbage wedge and you’re almost there. All you need is a sprinkle of bacon and crumbled blue cheese to complete this grilled wedge salad. While you’re grilling the cabbage, make sure to keep an eye on the wedges—the times listed below are estimates as grills vary in heat intensity. You’ll want to serve this salad with steak knives to slice the leaves off the cabbage core. Instead of golden or white balsamic vinegar, feel free to use white wine or rice wine vinegar—just make sure to add a teaspoon or two of sugar. If you don’t have or care for blue cheese, go ahead and swap it out with feta or gorgonzola.
As an alternative tossed salad option, cool the grilled cabbage wedges, just cut the leaves from the core, which you will discard, and then thinly slice it. Then toss the cabbage with a couple cups of your favorite spring salad mix, some sliced radishes, the bacon, and blue cheese in the fig dressing before serving.
Grilled Cabbage Blue Cheese Wedge Salad with Figs
Ingredients
Fig-Herb Dressing:
- 6 tablespoons golden or white balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup Blue Ribbon® Orchard Choice® or Sun-Maid® California Figs stemmed and thinly sliced
- ¼ cup thinly sliced fresh chives or green onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh thyme oregano or combination
- ¾ cup olive oil
Grilled Cabbage and Toppings:
- 1 head green or savoy cabbage about 2 lb. or 7-inch diameter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup cooked chopped bacon (about 4 slices)
- ½ cup crumbled blue cheese
Instructions
- For dressing, whisk together vinegar, water, salt and pepper to dissolve salt. Stir in Figs, chives, and thyme. Stir in olive oil. Set aside for 1 hour while preparing other ingredients.
- Prepare a grill for medium heat.
- Remove and discard tough outer leaves from cabbage. Cut cabbage in half. Cut each half into 3 to 4 wedges (each about 2 ¾-inches thick), leaving the core attached to the leaves to hold each wedge together. Brush wedges on cut sides lightly with oil and sprinkle with salt.
- Place wedges cut sides down, on grill over medium, direct heat. Cover grill and cook for 4 to 7 minutes or until edges are lightly charred and cabbage begins to soften. With grilling tongs or spatula, turn wedges over. Recover grill and cook for another 3 to 7 minutes, until edges char slightly and cabbage is crisp-tender.
- Place cooked wedges on serving plates or a platter. Remove Figs with slotted spoon and scatter around cabbage wedges. Drizzle dressing on the grilled wedge salad and sprinkle with bacon and blue cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe and photo by Lorelle Del Matto