Corn on the Cob with Lime

The list of ingredients may feel intimidating, but the recipe is simple. If you come up short on any of the spices, you can also do the corn with just lime and cayenne – delicious.

Serves 6

Spice mix:

• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 cloves
• 1 Tbsp black peppercorns
• 1 Tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 small dried chile
• 2 star anise
• salt and black pepper
• ½ tsp turmeric

• 6 ears corn, shucked and broken in half
• ¼ c lime juice
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• ¼ tsp cayenne
• ¾ tsp chaat masala (optional, see note)
  

Fill a large pot about 2/3 full with water. Add spice mix and bring to a boil. Season water with a good amount of salt (as for pasta, it should taste like the ocean) and then add turmeric.

Return water to boil and add corn, cooking until crisp-tender.

    

Put lime juice in a large bowl. Transfer corn with tongs to bowl along with butter, cayenne and chaat masala, if using, plus salt and pepper to taste. The best tool for spreading the mixture is clean hands!

Note: Chaat masala is a spice blend with a salty profile, based largely on dried mango powder, black salt, ginger and other spices. Can be purchased at Kalustyan’s on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan. 

Adapted from "One Spice, Two Spice" by Floyd Cardoz

Feta Salsa Verde

This is a great topping to add to a late summer meal of grilled eggplant or summer squash, corn, tomatoes – even cranberry beans or chickpeas. You can also vary the herbs – cilantro, marjoram (in smaller quantity) and mint all work well.

• ½ cup parsley
• ½ cup basil
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 Tbsp capers, drained (or, if packed in salt, rinsed and drained)
• 1 anchovy filet, optional
• 4 ounces feta
• fresh lemon juice
• crushed red pepper flakes
• olive oil
• salt and black pepper
  

In a food processor or using a mortar and pestle, roughly puree the parsley, basil, garlic, capers and anchovy. Alternatively, chop everything with a knife.

Break up feta into small chunks and place in a bowl large enough to hold all ingredients. Add herb mixture and toss, adding small amounts of lemon juice, crushed red pepper flakes, olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Farro with Corn and Chives

• 1 cup farro perlato (see note)
• 2 ears corn, shucked and cleaned
• 1 small bunch chives, chopped fine
• olive oil
• butter
• salt and black pepper
  

Bring a large pot of water to a boil; season with salt. Add farro and stir. Cook until farro is tender but still chewy, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once farro is cooked, strain into colander, then place in large bowl.

Meanwhile, cut corn from cob (this is easiest to do by using a serrated knife and cutting directly into a bowl to catch errant kernels). Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pan large enough to hold all the corn and add corn, sautéing until cooked through, 3 – 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, and add 1 – 2 pats of butter.

Add chives and cooked corn to farro. Toss and taste for seasoning, adding additional butter, salt and pepper to your liking. Great warm or room temperature.

Serves 4

Note: If your farro isn’t pearled, soak in water for 20 minutes at room temperature before cooking. 

Pickled Carrot Sticks

• 1 lb carrots, cut into 3 1/2- by 1/3-inch sticks
  
• 1 1/4 cups water
  
• 1 cup cider vinegar
  
• 1/4 cup sugar
  
• 2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dill seeds
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
  

Blanch carrots in a 4-quart nonreactive saucepan of boiling salted water 1 minute, then drain in a colander and rinse under cold water to stop cooking. Transfer carrots to a heatproof bowl.

Bring remaining ingredients to a boil in saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. Pour pickling liquid over carrots and cool, uncovered. Chill carrots, covered, at least 1 day for flavors to develop.

Cooks' note: Carrots keep, chilled in an airtight container, 1 month.

Zanne Stewart, Gourmet

Organic Herb-Roasted Corn

• 6 ears organic corn, husked
  
• 3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
  
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
  
• 1 teaspoon each dried tarragon, thyme, and basil, or 1 tablespoon each fresh, chopped
  
• 1-2 teaspoon each salt and ground black pepper
  

Preheat oven to 400°F. Have ready 6 sheets of baker’s parchment, each large enough to wrap an ear of corn. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter or warm olive oil; stir in garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper. When mixture is sizzling, remove from heat.

Place an ear of corn on a piece of baker’s parchment, spread about 2 teaspoons of garlic and herb mixture over corn, then wrap parchment up and around ear of corn, twisting ends of parchment to seal. Repeat with remaining ears of corn. Arrange wrapped ears on a baking sheet and roast 15 minutes. Serve hot in paper wrappers.  

Editor’s note: Although this preparation method is delicious, farm fresh corn this time of year is so incredible on its own that you can cut it off the cob and use it raw in any variety of salads and salsas.

Serves 6

Courtesy Dave Smith, http://organictobe.org

Gazpacho Salad

•      3 large tomatoes
  
•      1 small green bell pepper, seeded
  
•      1 medium cucumber, peeled and seeded
  
•      1/2 small red onion
  
•      2 cloves garlic
  
•      1/2 cup Shiraz (a red wine)
  
•      1/4 cup top-quality balsamic or olive-oil vinaigrette
  
•      Salt and freshly ground pepper
  

1. Very finely chop 1/3 of the tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber and red onion with all of the garlic. Place in a medium bowl, and stir in Shiraz and vinaigrette.  

2. Dice remaining tomatoes, pepper and cucumber, and cut onion into slivers; add to bowl.  

3. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour for flavors to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Makes 4 generous servings    

Recipe courtesy of Foster’s Wine Estates

 

Cucumber Yogurt Dip

• 2 8-oz containers plain Greek yogurt
  
• 1 pound cucumber, peeled, seeded, and either shredded in the food processor or chopped fine
  
• 2 tsp finely chopped fresh dill
  
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 1 1/2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  

Squeeze shredded cucumber between paper towels, to drain a bit of the moisture from them. Stir together the yogurt, cucumbers, dill, garlic, oil, lemon juice, and salt to taste. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Stir, garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and a dill sprig or two. Can be served with pita wedges as an appetizer. Or it's great as a sauce on Greek salad or in pita sandwiches (it's particularly good with falafel or with lamb).

Simple Tomato Sauce

• 8 medium-sized tomatoes (think decent-sized plum tomatoes)
  
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional, if you like a kick)
  
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 tsp sugar
  
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
  
• a few chopped fresh basil leaves
  

Put a large pot of water on to boil. While it's coming to a boil, cut an X in the bottom (opposite the stem end) middle of each tomato, just deep enough to go through the skin. Prepare a large bowl with cold water and a few ice cubes. Once the water is boiling, drop the tomatoes in and blanch for one minute only. Remove and place the tomatoes immediately in the cold water until cool enough to touch. The skin will be easy to peel off with flaps where you cut the X-es. Remove skins. If you like, cut tomatoes in half lengthwise and pull out the seeds with your fingers. If I'm feeling lazy, I leave them in.

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over med-high heat. Add the minced garlic, salt, and crushed red pepper if using, and sauté for about 1 minute, swirling it around to flavor the oil. Be very careful not to brown the garlic, as this will make the sauce very bitter! Add tomatoes and sugar, and mash them with a wooden spoon until broken up but still chunky. Toss in the chopped basil. Cook until it's bubbling, then reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until sauce has reduced slightly. Taste as it cooks and add more salt or sugar as you see fit. Makes enough for two medium pizzas. It's also good mixed with steamed veggies and pasta and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. This recipe can be doubled or tripled easily if you have tomatoes to use up, and it freezes very well. I make a triple batch of it in September and store it in three separate freezer bags, so that I can easily thaw just enough at a time to keep me eating peak-season tomato sauce through the winter.

Mediterranean Potato Salad

• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (dry, not packed in oil)
  
• boiling water
  
• about 5 cups cubed potatoes (5 decent-size potatoes)
  
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped scallions
  
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
  
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  
• 2 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  
• salt & fresh-ground black pepper to taste

Boil water in a kettle. In a bowl, cover dried tomatoes with enough boiling water to cover by about half an inch, and set aside.

Cube the potatoes into 1/2-inch chunks. Put into a large pot and add enough water to cover potatoes by 1 inch. Add a generous pinch or two of salt. Bring to a rolling boil, then lower the heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender enough to be easily pierced through with a fork, but not falling apart, about 10-12 minutes after reaching the boil and turning down.

Drain the sun-dried tomatoes, and squeeze them a little to get rid of excess moisture, and then finely chop them. In a large bowl, mix together scallions, cumin, lemon juice, olive oil, and chopped tomatoes. Drain potatoes, add them to the bowl, and mix everything together. It can be served warm, but for best results, chill for a couple of hours before serving. Serves 4.

Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home