Therese's Corn and Tomato Salad

A friend of a friend has a great summer project going on with his kids. They are raising corn in their backyard garden and selling their bounty for, get this, $2 a dozen. (TWO MEASLY BUCKS!) The kids are allowed to keep 50% of their profits, but the other 50% gets divided evenly between their college savings accounts, church, and the charity of their choice (the Humane Society.) I could not pass up helping the kids learn such a great life lesson in saving and giving to good causes, so I signed up for a dozen ears of summer sweet corn.

My friend brought me the bag of corn on Friday, and it was at that point I thought to myself, "What in the world am I going to do with all this corn?"

I chatted with Therese, of dinner co-op fame, and she shared a recipe for corn salad. It was easy. EA-SY. And delicious. DUH-LICIOUS. So, I'm sharing it with you here.

Visit your local purveyor of sweet corn, be it the grocery store, farm stand, or kids learning a life lesson, and make this up before summer passes you by.

Therese's Corn and Tomato Salad
From: Therese (Obviously.)
Serves: 6

6 ears corn on the cob, husks and silk removed
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved if large
1/2 - 1 cup basil (to taste or as much as your garden can handle), chopped
6 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoons olive oil (the good stuff)
Salt and pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the corn and boil for 3-4 minutes. Remove corn to a colander and place under cold, running water to stop the cooking process and cool it down quickly. (Alternatively, if you plan ahead, you can shock the corn in an ice bath. I, obviously, didn't plan ahead.)

Using a very sharp knife, cut the corn kernels off the cob. (Note: As you can see from the photo, I attempted to catch runaway kernels by placing the cutting board on a rimmed baking sheet. I'm pleased to report that it worked!)

In a large bowl, combine corn kernels, tomatoes, and basil. In a separate bowl, whisk together cider vinegar and olive oil. Pour dressing over the salad and stir gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.