Wednesday, September 11, 2013

RECIPE: End-of-Summer Corn and Tomato Salad


Yes, the kids are back in school - but technically summer doesn't end for another week and a half. And because fresh, local summer produce is only here for such a brief season, I want to make the most of it before I begin the long fall and winter sojourn of endless root vegetable dishes. I don't have anything again root vegetables (in fact I'm fond of many of them), their season is just a much longer one here in Southern Ontario!

So, always looking for more ways to incorporate the sacred, short-seasoned corn and tomatoes into our lives, I came up with this salad. It was a hit with my family and also when I prepared it for a Cooking at the Market demo a week and a half ago.

I admit that cooking and cooling, then stripping the kernels off, several cobs of corn is a bit time consuming, but the taste of fresh corn in this salad is so worth it! The corn can be cooked and chilled ahead of time; and the whole salad can be made in advance if you have company coming or just want to have less work to do at mealtime.

This salad lends itself well to improvisation, so feel free to add whatever other embellishments you feel inspired to include. Diced avocado or sweet peppers play nicely with these flavours, and cubed or crumbled cheese is another nice addition (mozzarella or feta work well). If you want to make this into a heartier main dish salad, toss in about 1 1/2 cups of cooked black beans, or some leftover shredded chicken or pork. You could also add some cooked quinoa or barley to the mix! See, the options are nearly endless :)

Ingredients:
6 cobs corn, cooked and cooled
2 cups of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved (I used a combination of red cherry and yellow pear tomatoes)
6-8 green onions, sliced

Lime & Cumin Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
zest and juice of 1 lime
1/4 tsp dry mustard powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Instructions:
-In a medium serving dish, combine the corn, tomatoes and green onions.

-In a small mixing bowl, whisk together all vinaigrette ingredients until well-blended. Pour over corn mixture and stir gently to coat evenly. 

Serves 6 as a side dish. 

For more simple, tasty and family-friendly recipes like this one, check out my book: Cheap Appétit: The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible)

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