Mexican Corn Salad with Spicy Lime-Cilantro Vinaigrette

Main Ingredients: cilantro, corn, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese,

Spicy Lime-Cilantro Vinaigrette:
1 cup fresh lime juice
2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoon red chile flakes
1 jalapeno pepper, steamed, seeded, and minced
½ cup vegetables oil
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch cilantro washed and chopped coarsely
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the corn salad:
6 ears corn, soaked 30 minutes, husks intact
½ medium white onion, cut into ¼-inch dice
2 pint baskets cherry tomatoes, halved
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and well-drained
1 green bell pepper, cut into ¼-inch dice
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into half-moon slices
1 bunch radishes, washed and sliced
3 hearts of romaine, chopped, washed, and dried
1 cup feta cheese, crumbled (optional)

Prepare grill for cooking corn. Combine ingredients for vinaigrette in the bowl of a processor. Pulse to chop coarsely. Set aside.
Grill corn, with husks on, for 10-15 minutes, turning frequently. When cool, shuck the corn and cut kernels off the cob. In a large bowl, combine the corn kernels with onion, cherry tomatoes, black beans, bell pepper, cucumber, radishes, salt, and pepper. (Don’t over mix or the black beans will turn the salad gray.) Combine with ¾ cup of vinaigrette. Dress romaine with remainder of the dressing.
Serve as individual salads or as a plattered salad. Place greens on a serving dish. Top with corn salad and sprinkle with crumbled cheese. Serves 4.
--Roxanne O’Brien, “Summer Sides and Sauces,” The Herb Quarterly, Summer 2012

Diann Nance, Diann's Greenhouse