Grilled corn salad for a warm summer day
My garden is exploding! Tomatoes that generally begin turning green around the middle of August are ready to eat this second week of July. The rocket, which some refer to as arugula, offered two cuttings of the spicy lettuce and begins to bolt. The zucchini is quickly outgrowing its bed and I am overwhelmed with jalapenos and sweet-hot peppers.
Strawberries, cherries and raspberries reached their potential weeks ago and are frozen, sauced or jellied waiting to offer the bright taste of summer in the cold, frozen winter to come. Pumpkins are taking size on the vine, watermelons look like they might mature before the first frost of autumn and my family will be eating fresh blackberries in the next few weeks.
This unseasonably warm summer offers the blessing of an early bounty. I've cut and dried multiple herbs twice and the bed is stretching its limits asking for another haircut. I oblige and hang freshly-bundled oregano, thyme, sage, savory, marjoram and chervil in my drying shed next to 20 bundles of herbs drying from the previous cuttings. It's time to start giving away what my family can't eat.
Honeybees work busily to collect pollen from my lavender plants and offer a chorus of buzzing which makes me smile and wish for this day never to end. Some say winter is the season of death, autumn; old-age, spring; rebirth, and summer is the season of life. On this warm, summer day I feel the vibrant, heartbeat of a world full of life.
The Earth on this warm summer day reminds me of advice I offer many clients as a psychotherapist, "If you're feeling down, blue, depressed or sad, surround yourself with people that make you happy."
Today I surround myself with the earth, in my garden visited by buzzing bees, blooming plants and humming birds. I am happy.
As I slowly walk barefoot through my garden, I search for the makings of a side-dish to offer friends. I pick a few herbs, tomatoes, rocket, kale, an onion and some peppers, place them in my wicker basket and reluctantly close the garden gate, leaving behind a good friend.
Entering my kitchen with my bounty I decide on an Asian/Mexican inspired grilled corn salad and begin to wash the vegetables for the dish.
Grilled Corn Salad
Ingredients
6 ears of corn, shucked
? cup of Cotija cheese - a salty Mexican cheese that is simply amazing and makes this dish
1 ? cups mixed heirloom tomatoes of different colors and sizes
2-3 sweet hot pepper or jalapeno and bell pepper - depending on your desire for heat
1/2 cup tightly packed chiffonade of kale
1/2 cup tightly packed chiffonade of rocket (arugula)
1/4 cup small diced red onion
1/4 cup tightly packed chiffonade fresh cilantro, less or more to taste
Sauce - can be doubled depending on one's preference for seasoning
2 teaspoons olive oil
? cup rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat; lightly oil the grate. Cook the corn on the preheated grill, turning occasionally, until the corn is tender and many specks of black appear, about 10 minutes; set aside until just cool enough to handle. Slice the kernels off the cob and place into a bowl. Combine the warm corn kernels with the herbs, cheese and vegetables.
Mix ingredients for the sauce in a separate bowl and whisk until combined. Taste. Use these measurements as a starting point. Add more ingredients to satisfy your flavor profile. Once you are satisfied with the flavor, add the sauce to the vegetables. Be careful not to overdress the salad.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to get to know each other. Serve to 6-8 of your closest friends and enjoy the gift of the early summer.
Send comments or other suggestions to William Rutherford at bprutherford@hotmail.com or visit pensiveparenting.com.