apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

This has been our go-to salad for a couple weeks now, ever since the garden tomatoes really got going. It's a wonderful way to showcase their bright flavor against sweet, tender corn — crisp and juicy. We love the tang of a little fresh goat cheese, and the flavors of herbs.

This is just a rough recipe, of course; this kind of summer salad is practically a genre all its own. Take whatever you have on hand and just mix it up into something that tastes good to you.

Herbed Sweet Corn and Tomato Salad
serves 6

6 ears fresh sweet corn, shucked
4 medium tomatoes, as ripe as possible
1/4 cup (or small handful) fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup (or small handful) fresh mixed herbs — like Italian parsley, basil, rosemary, sage
1 tablespoon olive oil
Kosher salt and fresh black pepper, to taste
3 ounces soft goat cheese, chilled and crumbled

Bring a large pot of water to the boil over medium-high heat. Add the corn and boil for five minutes. Drain and let cool.

Meanwhile, chop the tomatoes in quarters and scrape or squeeze out the juices and seeds. (Reserve, if you want, for a future batch of tomato sauce, or to mix into cream cheese for a fresh sandwich spread.) Chop the seeded tomato quarters into a rough dice. Pat dry with a paper towel to remove any extra moisture.

When the corn has cooled, stand each ear up in a wide, shallow bowl and slice the corn kernels off with a chef's knife. Toss the corn with the tomatoes.

Finely mince the mint and herb leaves and toss with the vegetables, along with the olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then crumble in the goat cheese and toss gently. Serve and enjoy!

Note: Of course this is good with many other mix-ins too; we added a few cubes of grilled eggplant to this salad. Sometimes we like pinenuts or a touch of balsamic vinegar.

Related: Recipe: Grilled Cactus and Corn Salad

(Images: Faith Durand)