Vegetables on the Grill

At this time of year, all of us are thinking about pulling out those grills and welcoming in the summer season. And while you can cook meats and steaks on the grill, did you ever think about cooking vegetables? Well you can; if you follow the expert tips below, found in The Better Homes and Gardens New Grilling Cookbook, you, too, can achieve perfect results every time.

Tips for Direct-Grilling Vegetables, from The Better Homes and Gardens® New Grilling Cookbook
Before grilling, rinse, trim, cut up, and precook your desired vegetables as directed below. To precook the vegetables, bring a small amount of water to a boil in a saucepan; add the vegetables and simmer, covered, for the time specified below. Before grilling, drain the vegetables well. Test for medium or high temperature on the grill. Brush the vegetables with olive oil or unsalted butter. Place the vegetables on a lightly oiled grilling tray or vegetable-grilling basket, on a piece of heavy foil, or directly on the grill rack (perpendicular to the grates, directly over preheated coals). Grill vegetables, uncovered, for the amount of time given below or until tender, turning occasionally. Monitor the grilling closely so that the vegetables don't char.

• Asparagus: Snap off and discard any tough bases of the stems. Precook the stalks for 3 to 4 minutes, then tie the asparagus in bundles with strips of cooked green onion tops. Grill for 3 to 5 minutes.
• Corn on the Cob: Remove the husks from the corn; scrub the ears well to remove any silk, then rinse and pat dry the ears. Do not precook the corn. Grill for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Fennel: Snip off the feathery leaves from the top of the fennel bulb. Cut off the stems. Precook the fennel for 10 minutes, then cut the bulbs into 6 to 8 wedges. Grill for about 8 minutes.
• Leeks: Cut off the green tops of the fennel; trim the bulb roots and remove the tough outer layers. Precook the leeks for 10 minutes or until tender, then halve the leeks lengthwise. Grill for 5 minutes.
• Mushrooms, whole or sliced: Do not precook mushrooms. Grill for 7 to 10 minutes.
• New potatoes: Halve the potatoes crosswise. Precook the potatoes for 10 minutes or until almost tender. Grill for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Sweet peppers: Remove the stems from the sweet peppers. Quarter the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes from the interior. Cut the pepper into 1-inch-wide strips. Do not precook sweet peppers. Grill for 8 to 10 minutes.
• Zucchini or yellow summer squash: Cut off the ends of the zucchini or summer squash. Quarter the vegetables