Sweet Corn, Spring Onion, and Heirloom Tomato Salad

 

What could possibly be more summery than corn, basil and heirloom tomatoes?  I literally can't think of a single thing.  Nor can I think of anything more delicious than fresh sweet corn in the summer.  Growing up we had corn growing in the backyard and every summer I would stuff my face with as much corn as I could possibly handle.  Yes, I know.  That's a wonderful mental image, but it's a fairly accurate description.  As far as I am concerned there are very few things that you can do to really improve upon sweet corn.  Simply steamed (or grilled) and spread with butter and salt it is delicious.  If you want to get creative you can make the Corn with Green Onion Oil that I made earlier in the week, or Mexican Grilled Corn (aka elote).  There are a lot of corn salad recipes out there that involve other summery combinations like avocado, lime, and black beans, or various other things.  But I wanted something simple that purely tasted of summer, so this was the recipe that I came up with, and summer is exactly what I got.  Alex got stuck making this dish for himself because I got held up at work after I swore I would make it home for dinner at 7:30 pm (oops - sorry hon, I owe you one).  And then he even took pictures for me.  Isn't he the best?  But this salad makes a perfect side dish - one that I will enjoy all summer long.  The combination of the corn, tomato, spring onions, and balsamic is a little on the sweet side, but in the freshest and most summery way possible.  I think it would be perfect served with some chicken paillards or some really nice seared sea scallops.  Yum.

Recipe after the jump!

Sweet Corn, Spring Onion, and Heirloom Tomato Salad

INGREDIENTS:

3 ears fresh corn, shucked

1 large spring onion, finely chopped 

2 tbsp evoo

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 large heirloom tomato, chopped into roughly 1/2-inch pieces

1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped

Cut corn kernels from ears with a sharp knife (or a corn zipper), discarding corn cobs.  Heat evoo in a large heavy skillet (we used our cast-iron) over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking.  Sauté corn and spring onion with s&p to taste, stirring regularly, until tender, about 4 minutes.

Add garlic and sauté, stirring, 1 minute.  Add balsamic and cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 1 minute.  Add tomatoes and cook, gently stirring, 1 minute.  Season to taste with additional s&p, if necessary.  Remove skillet from heat and stir in basil.

Serve.