Raw Corn and Tomato Salad

Raw and vegan.  Because vegan feels easier in the summer, to me at least.  

Hey, hi!  Hope your weekend was great.  We did super low key with farmer's market, lots of walking, eating, photographing food, golf, and wine.  It was glorious and prepped me for 3 full weekends of busy we have in front of us.  Fun, but still busy.  

Anyway!

Whether or not you're a practicing vegan, I hope you're someone who enjoys summer produce as much as I do.  I have to admit that I find eating seasonally somewhat boring in the months where lettuce and beets are the only things really locally available, when it's so tempting to go to the store and buy anything you want to eat, even if it doesn't taste that great.  In the summer I don't have that problem at all because there are so many amazing fruits and veggies coming straight of the ground all around us.  

There is a specific beauty to fresh local corn: It's so good, so much different than the nonsense you can get year round (where is that coming from?), and can end up being sugary sweet, crunchy, and creamy all at once without doing anything to it but cutting it off the cob.  I love corn in lots of cooked ways too, but especially enjoy it raw on cobs that are so flavorful and perfect right now.  

You'll need corn, tomatoes, and basil.  Besides some salt and pepper, that's the entire dish staring right at you.  

Scraping the corn off the cob is the most labor-intensive thing about this dish, and I think it's easiest to do using a serrated or bread knife - my regular knives never seem quite sharp enough to cut it off easily.  When the corn is scraped, chop the tomato for the salad, and prep is done.  

Ingredients in bowl.  

Mix, taste, add more salt and pepper.  I tear the basil leaves right into the bowl and call it a day.  

This could be lunch.  I've served it a few times with green salad and bread, and it's great with some spicy blackened grilled fish or chicken on top, too.  I've also served it with a grilled pesto chicken that my sister makes, and THAT is ridiculously good.  

Enjoy this simple raw side dish as much as you can for the next few weeks.  It's perfect for August!