Mystery Lovers' Kitchen: Grilled corn salad;summer salad;Victoria Abbott

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Summer payoff salad! Corn and tomatoes are ready.

From the table of Victoria Abbott!

Grilled corn salad

We love this time of year. Our summer corn is just at its peak and those juicy tomatoes are finally here too. This salad seems to be a perfect way to combine some of our favorite late summer flavors. It’s easier than it sounds. Plus it’s one of those salads that you could add whatever else you have on hand. We changed the original by adding the red pepper and green onion and leaving out the cumin (not a popular spice with a certain someone).

We served it with simple roasted chicken breasts and it was a perfect summer dinner.

The man of the house was thrilled with this salad. He’s very fond of Mystery Lovers Kitchen and said so as he polished it off!

We all like the smoky taste of grilled fresh corn and for this recipe we just added a few extra cobs to the grill. We husked the corn and made sure to remove all the silk as they burn. We grilled the corn until blackish brown on each side – 15 to 20 minutes, but of course that varies from grill to grill.

You can make this right away or save the corn and make your salad the next day. Next time we'll add an extra ear of corn. Stay tuned.

Salad ingredients

3 cobs of corn, ‘charred’ and cooled

I cup black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes (halved)

1 avocado, cubed

3 green onions, sliced (green parts only)

1 red pepper, seeded and chopped

Using a sharp knife, slice kernels from corn. Combine in a bowl with the beans, tomatoes, avocado, green onion and red pepper.

Spicy Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons maple syrup (you can use less, but why would you?)

1 tsp lime juice

¼ tsp chili powder

¼ cumin (optional)

S & P to taste

Whisk together the cider vinegar, oil, maple syrup, lime juice and chili powder.

And add to salad, tossing to coat.

Enjoy!

We know you will.

Easy summer meals like this leave more time for reading mysteries. And speaking of reading mysteries ...

Victoria Abbott is a collaboration between Victoria Maffini and her mother, Mary Jane Maffini (who insists this IS on her diet).. The Christie Curse, their first book collector mystery, launched in March 2013 and The Sayers Swindle, the second in the series will be out in December. Please let them know how you like it!