Best Summer Recipes: Fresh Corn Salad

For our 4th of July BBQ this year, we decided to do ribs with potato salad, and I've been craving a good corn salad all summer! So I went on the internet hunt for a good corn salad recipe.  Although there were several I considered from favorite sites like Epicurious and Food Network, I chose this one from BHG.com, which was simply fantastic.  It was the perfect flavor mix with the BBQ ribs and potato salad.  And, by the way, the potato salad was provided by my good friend Sylvia, who so happened to find purple carrots at the Farmers' Market.  They were a great addition to her potato salad!

Now on to the best Fresh Corn Salad I've ever had:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup sugar (I prefer less sweet, so I adjusted to 1/8-1/4)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 4 ears fresh corn
• 1/2 cup finely diced red onion (cut to same size as the clusters of corn kernels), soaked in ice water for 20 minutes and patted dry
• 1/2 cup cucumber, seeded, not peeled if unwaxed, then diced to same size of onions
• 1/2 cup red or orange sweet pepper, diced to same size as onions
• 1/2 cup cherry or pear tomatoes, halved or quartered
• (I did heaping 1/2 cups of all three of these vegetables, so be generous)
• 3 tablespoons parsley, finely torn
• 1 tablespoon basil leaves or buds, pulled apart
• 1 tablespoon fresh jalapeno, seeds and veins removed, very finely diced* (I skipped the jalapeno as my husband is not a fan)
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
• 1 - 2 cups small arugula leaves
• (While skipping the jalapeno for Ken, he would have me add cilantro, which works well in this salad, so feel free if you're a fan of cilantro)

Directions

1. For dressing, in a glass bowl whisk together vinegar, sugar, the 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper until sugar is dissolved. Let dressing stand while preparing salad.

2. For salad, cut corn kernels from cobs. In a large bowl toss corn and remaining ingredients except sea salt and arugula leaves.

3. To serve, transfer salad to large serving bowl. Season with the 1/2 tsp. sea salt. Add the dressing; gently thread in arugula leaves. Serve immediately. (Cucumbers and tomatoes will begin to break down.) Makes 8 servings

This salad should be repeated throughout the summer! 

Photo taken from BHG.com

Enjoy and have a happy day!