Grilled Mini Sweet Peppers with Goat Cheese

Heat grill to medium to medium-high heat. Make sure grates are scrubbed clean and then oiled. (To oil the grates, add some canola oil to a small bowl. Then fold a heavy paper towel a few times to make a smaller square. With a tongs, grasp the folded paper towel and dip it into the oil until the paper towel is drenched. Then run the paper towel over the grates, repeating until all grill grates are thoroughly oiled.)

Cut stems off peppers, then slice peppers in half lengthwise and remove inner ribs and seeds. Place halved peppers on large rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, folding to coat evenly. Sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Fold and repeat.

Place peppers cut-side down on hot grill grates. Once the peppers are charred to your liking, flip to grill the other side of the peppers. Each side should only take a minute or two. When peppers are done, remove them to the rimmed baking pan, cut-side up – or to a platter for a nicer serving presentation. Using a small knife or spoon, remove a bit of goat cheese from the log and add it to the center of a grilled pepper half. Repeat until all goat cheese is used.

Sprinkle peppers with fresh rosemary and thyme, plus a nice amount of Maldon smoked sea salt flakes. Some of the salt flakes can be rather large, so lightly crunch them between your finger tips as you sprinkle, if desired. I’ve found that our family likes to get plenty of pops of smoked salt in their bites, so I tend to sprinkle fairly generously. Serve warm.