July 4th BBQ: Mixed Skewers & a Grilled Watermelon Feta Salad

In my opinion, there is no complete July 4th weekend celebration without grilling, so I obviously had to give you all some #girlswhogrill recipes to share with your friends and family. A few weekends ago when I hosted some friends for a grilling-filled beach weekend, this recipe was a huge hit. It is, to me, a grilling staple and something I grew up eating but for some reason hadn’t enjoyed in what feels like forever. The skewers are surprisingly easy to make, but provide your guests with fun options to make them feel they’re also involved in the cooking process (its wild how much one simple choice can elicit this feeling). Not only are they delicious on their own, but they are brightened even further when paired with this unique grilled watermelon salad. Quite honestly, I’m not sure why it took me so long to throw some watermelon on the grill! 

Ingredients (serves 6):

• Chicken breast (2)

• Beef for stew, pre-cut (1lb)

• Shrimp (12)

• Scallop (12)

• Bell pepper (3)

• Onion (2)

• Zucchini (3)

• Watermelon (1)

• Mint (1 bunch)

• Feta cheese (1 cup crumbled)

• Avocado oil

• Red pepper flakes (3 teaspoons)

• Old bay seasoning (5 teaspoons)

• Salt

• Pepper

Directions:

For the Skewers:

1. Prepare the vegetables; cutting the bell peppers and onions into 1 ½ inch wide slices and the zucchini into ½ inch wide disks and then set aside

2. Prepare the proteins by dicing the chicken into 1-inch wide cubes and then placing the steak, chicken, and the seafood each in a separate bowl or plate

3. Season each bowl of protein with 1 teaspoon of avocado oil, ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon of old bay seasoning, and salt & pepper and set aside

4. Season the vegetables with 1 tablespoon of avocado oil, 2 teaspoons of old bay seasoning, 1 ½ teaspoons of red pepper flakes, and alt & pepper and mix well then set aside

5. With all of the bowls of different ingredients in front of you, prepare the skewers by layering the vegetables and proteins. I prefer to do ones solely for steak, chicken, and then seafood to make it easy for my guests, but you can mix all together if you’d like! I layer: pepper, protein, onion, protein, zucchini, protein, pepper, but not all are the same. Have fun with it!

6. Heat the grill to ~450 degrees and once it is ready, place the skewers in, close the grill, and allow to cook for ~5 minutes on one side

7. Flip the skewers and allow to cook for an additional ~5 minutes, or until they are cooked through and nicely charred

8. Remove the skewers from the grill and allow to rest for ~5-10 minutes before serving

For a video tutorial of the skewers, watch below!

For the Watermelon Salad:

1. Cut the watermelon into the classic slices

2. Heat the grill to ~450 degrees and place the watermelon directly on the grill

3. Close the grill and allow to cook for ~5-7 minutes before flipping and cooking, closed, for an additional ~5 minutes

4. Remove the watermelon from the grill and allow to cool for ~10 minutes

5. While the watermelon is cooking, chop the mint into thin pieces and crumble the feta cheese

6. Cut the grilled watermelon into small chunks, mix with the feta cheese, season with some salt and pepper, and then top with the chopped mint

Allergen Information:

• Gluten Free

• Paleo (skewers)

• Whole30 (skewers)

• Soy Free

• Nut Free