Summer Corn Salad

Last weekend, we were invited to our friends' house for dinner. Karl had a new grill and would be making kabobs and he asked if I'd bring a "summer side." I thought about a recipe I'd seen in Taste of Home magazine for Summer Corn Salad. I decided to use it as a jumping-off point.

Priscilla Yee's version features corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, basil and feta with a dressing of lime and hot pepper sauce. I don't like spicy food and Steve can't eat raw onions, so I knew I'd be making modifications. I ended up keeping most of the ingredients the same but added some others and changed some of the procedures.

It was a hit!

Summer Corn Salad

                                              3 ears of corn                                                   1/4 c. feta
                                              1 T butter                                                          2 T. fresh basil, minced
                                              1 T. minced onion                                            1 T fresh lime juice
                                              1 cucumber, finely chopped                          1/4 c. olive oil
                                              1.5 c. cherry tomatoes, halved                      1/4 tsp salt
                                              1 avocado, diced                                              1/4 tsp pepper

Begin by cutting the kernels off three raw ears of corn. Separate 1 cup of corn kernels and set the rest aside. Put butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When butter is bubbly, add minced onion and stir constantly for 10 seconds. Add 1 cup of corn and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat and let cool completely.

In a large bowl, combine cucumber, tomatoes, raw corn kernels, and cooled cooked corn/onion mixture. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Drizzle over salad and toss completely to coat. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, stir in avocado, feta and basil.