Today we welcome back Lisa Cericola, editor of Dinner Party, as our featured guest poster. Lisa’s had good luck with finding tasty tomatoes this season and is celebrating the last rays of summer with a salad that is gorgeous in its brevity.
Although the homegrown tomatoes have been suffering, I’ve been able to supplement with some gorgeous local specimens from the greenmarkets this summer and still get my tomato fix. If you’re lucky enough to get your hands on some heirloom tomatoes, you can still find late-season varieties from now until the end of September. The best way to eat these beauties is simply. I like to toss together a salad of fresh corn kernels, basil, shallots, and several kinds of tomatoes in a tangy red wine vinaigrette. This combination ended up being a study in yellow, with a few Green Zebras for a little color contrast. And if you can’t find tomatoes due to blight or a lack of farmers’ markets in your neck of the woods, try substituting peaches or yellow plums, or only using cherry tomatoes. It’s not rocket science, but it’s a delicious way to hold on to summer before sweater weather hits.
Simple corn and tomato salad
(Serves 2 to 4 people)
For the salad:
- 2 ears of corn, shucked, and kernels removed from the cob
- 2 small heirloom tomatoes, sliced into wedges
- 1 handful cherry or grape tomatoes
- 1 shallot, sliced thinly
- 4 leaves basil, julienned
- sea salt
For the dressing:
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Combine the vinegar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Stir together until combined. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste.
To assemble the salad, divide the corn equally among your plates. Arrange the tomato slices on top, then add the cherry tomatoes and shallots. Drizzle the dressing on top of each salad, then top with the basil and some flaky sea salt if you have it.
