I can’t believe it’s already Memorial Day weekend! If you’re looking for some ideas for new recipes, here are 5 Memorial Day grilling recipes that I love. No, you definitely don’t just need to stick with burgers and hot dogs. I encourage you to try something new, especially find a way to incorporate vegetables and fruits this grilling season!

1. Grilled Apricot Salad

I’ve never eaten grilled apricots before. The idea for this grilled apricot salad recipe came about after a failed attempt to grill peaches (we couldn’t get the pits out!). Since apricots were also in season, we decided to give them a try and developed this salad using grilled apricots, watercress, feta, balsamic syrup, and pepitas.

I love this salad because it seems so upscale, perfect for entertaining, but it’s actually super easy to make. The most difficult part is grilling the apricots, which isn’t even tough. You just need to be patient and pay attention to your apricots as they grill. You need to watch them closely to ensure they don’t overcook, but still get the pretty char marks on them.

2. Grilled Summer Vegetable Galette

To create the grilled vegetable galette recipe, first I made a really simple, and perfect pie dough. I followed this recipe. I know it might seem like a  lot of work to make dough from scratch, but it’s really easy. It took me less than 10 minutes to make this dough. I used my food processor, and it was a breeze. The dough needs to rest for at least an hour, so I grilled the veggies while the dough was resting.

I chose to include eggplant, zucchini, and summer squash because they share similar shapes. I wanted uniformity in the pieces to create the pinwheel effect. If you prefer other summer vegetables, you could substitute almost any other veggies into this recipe. If the pinwheel pattern feels too complex, you could also rough-chop the veggies to create a more rustic feel.

3. Cilantro Lime Grilled Sweet Potato Wedges

If you’re looking for a great Memorial Day grilling recipe side dish, you need to try these grilled sweet potatoes. The best part about the grilled sweet potatoes with cilantro and lime dressing is that they are super simple to make. All you need is four large sweet potatoes, a couple of limes, some oil, honey, and cilantro.

4. Mexican Street Corn

If you haven’t had Mexican street corn before, you’re missing out! Mexican street corn is a great side dish to accompany almost any summer meal. It works perfectly as a side with grilled meats, or you can cut it off the cob and add it to salsa or top your protein with it.

5. Kansas City Style BBQ Ribs

Fun fact, I lived in Kansas for a couple of years so we went to Kansas City many many times to try all of the famous BBQ restaurants. If you’ve never tried making ribs at home, here is a complete tutorial on how to smoke ribs at home using a charcoal grill. The entire recipe is also included.

I hope you will try some of these Memorial Day grilling recipes. Honestly, I think grilling veggies and fruit is the best. Although I do love my meat, as a true midwesterner does, I really do love the char you can achieve (and quickly) with vegetables and fruits. I hope these recipes inspire you to try something different this holiday grilling season. 

What are some of your favorite Memorial Day grilling recipes?  Let me know in a comment below!