One of my favorite things to do in the summer is to go to the local farmer markets around town to pick up fresh fruits and vegetables for the week. I look forward to this activity for a couple of reasons. The first is I love supporting the local farmers. The second reason is because the fruits and vegetables that I get when they are in season in Georgia just taste so much better! I'm always inspired to plan my meals for the week around what I find. As a result, I'm cooking at home more and definitely eating healthier.
On one trip to the Freedom Farmers Market, hosted weekly in the parking lot of the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, I found a bunch of curly kale and sweet corn and instantly thought of a delicious side dish - Corn and Kale Salad. You could actually make this a meal by adding grilled shrimp if you wanted or just use it as a side dish.
I thought I'd share this recipe with you all and maybe inspire you to find your own local farmers market and get creative!
Enjoy!!
Recipe
Ingredients:
3 ears of corn cut off the cob
1 cup of curly kale torn into small pieces
1/4 cup of red onion, diced
1/4 of a jalapeno, diced
2 small radishes thinly sliced
3 to 4 leaves of fresh Basil
1 large lime
1/4 cup olive oil
Dressing:
Juice of 1 large lime with zest of half the lime
1/4 cup of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Whisk well and pour over vegetables and toss.
Instructions:
After removing the corn husks, cut the corn off of the cob. One easy way to do this is by taking a smaller bowl and placing it in the center of a bigger mixing bowl upside down. Then cut the bottom of the corn stalk off and place that end on the top of the smaller bowl. Now the corn will fall into the bigger bowl and not go all over your counter. Rise and remove the kale leaves from the stems. Then tear or chop the kale into small, bite-size pieces and place in the bowl with the corn. Dice the red onion and jalapeno, slice the radishes and add all to the bowl.
Next tear the basil into small pieces and add to the vegetables. You could also cut the basil into ribbons by laying the leaves on top of one another, rolling them up together length-wise and then cutting thin slices cross-wise, creating ribbons. Add this to the bowl.
In a separate bowl, add the dressing ingredients and whisk together. Pour dressing over the corn mixture and mix to combine