Hello and welcome to WFD! I wrote a post earlier today for Saturday Morning Garden Blogging and shared recipes for some corn dishes there so please check those out when you get a chance!
Here are some more of my favorite ways to take advantage of fresh local corn if you can!
from Serious Eats
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (40ml) vegetable oil, divided
- 3 ounces finely diced zucchini (85g; about 1/2 medium zucchini)
- Salt
- 3 ounces fresh corn kernels (85g; about 1 small ear) I have used drained, canned corn or frozen during the off-season.
- 1 jalapeño pepper, minced
- 1 tablespoon (12g) minced fresh cilantro leaves
- 4 ounces (115g) shredded Jack cheese
- 2 (8-inch) flour tortillas
Directions
1. Heat 2 teaspoons (10ml) oil in a 10-inch cast iron or nonstick skillet over high heat until oil just starts to smoke. Add zucchini, season with salt, and cook, tossing and stirring frequently, until zucchini is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add corn kernels and continue cooking, tossing frequently, until corn is lightly browned, about 2 minutes longer. Add jalapeño and cook, tossing constantly, until softened, about 30 seconds. Stir in cilantro and transfer mixture to a medium bowl.
2. Add cheese to zucchini mixture and mix to combine. Spread half of mixture evenly over half of one tortilla, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Fold tortilla over and seal edges by pressing down firmly. Repeat with remaining filling and second tortilla.
3. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons (30ml) oil in same skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Carefully add both folded tortillas and cook, swirling and moving tortillas around, until golden brown and puffy on first side, about 2 minutes. Using a flexible metal spatula, flip quesadillas, season with salt, and continue cooking until golden brown and puffy on second side, about 2 minutes longer.
4. Transfer quesadillas to a paper towel to drain. Cut into triangles and serve immediately.
Corn, tomato, feta, herbs. So simple yet so good!
From Serious Eats
ingredients
- 3 tablespoons best quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon juice from 1 lemon
- 4 ears sweet corn, husks removed
- 2 pounds ripe tomatoes (see note below), cut into bite-size chunks (as you can see in my photo above I used some lovely Sungold cherry tomatoes and a couple large heirlooms)
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh basil leaves
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh mint leaves
- 8 ounces feta cheese, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
- Combine olive oil and lemon juice in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. To char corn without a grill, see note below.
- Place corn directly over hot side of grill and cook, turning occasionally, until charred on all sides and fully tender, about 10 minutes total. Remove corn from grill and allow to rest until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes.
- Working one ear at a time, hold the corn vertically inside a large bowl and use a sharp knife to remove the kernels. Discard the cob. Add tomatoes, parsley, basil, mint, and feta cheese to the bowl. Whisk the dressing and add it to the bowl. Season with salt and pepper and gently fold with clean hands until all the ingredients are incorporated and coated in the dressing. Serve immediately.
Note: For the tomatoes, I like to go for nice, heavy, heirloom varieties like Purple Cherokee or orange Amana tomatoes, along with a few smaller cherry or grape tomatoes. But really, the only key is that the tomatoes must be ripe, and that they must be as local as you can find.
To char corn without a grill, remove raw corn kernels from husk. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large non-stick or cast iron skillet or wok over high heat until shimmering. Add corn, shake once to distribute, and cook without moving until darkly charred on first side, about 3 minutes. Toss and flip corn and repeat until corn is covered in dark spots, about 8 minutes total. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then proceed.
Corn-on-the-cob is a treat that brings me back to childhood. We had those little plastic corn spears that had yellow corn cobs on the end and 2 long spikes to go into either end of the corn. Lots of butter and salt and pepper were all you needed.
Now? I still keep it simple but there are plenty of good sprinkles to play around with:
Chili powder and lime, smoked paprika, or fresh chopped cilantro.
Parmesan cheese, parsley, oregano.
How about smearing some pesto on the hot ears?
Those are some of my favorites. If you have one to share please do in the comments!
Dinner here is TBD. I was up pretty early and we have leftovers so I can be lazy tonight. How about you folks?
Here is the schedule:
What's For Dinner Schedule
| date |
post # |
author |
| 08/29 |
15.08 |
ninkasi23 |
| 09/05 |
15.09 |
OPEN |
| 09/12 |
15.10 |
esquimaux |
| 09/19 |
15.11 |
tonyahky |
| 09/26 |
15.12 |
OPEN |
| 10/03 |
15.13 |
OPEN |
| 10/10 |
15.14 |
OPEN |
| 10/17 |
15.15 |
OPEN |
As always, if you would like to write a post for our weekly WFD just pick an open date and let me know!
