Stretching the Limits of a Definition

Salsa can be almost anything, right? So long as everything's chopped small and is able to be scooped with a corn chip and it has a little citrus accent, right? Okay so some purists may argue with my liberal definition of salsa but I say it's summer, and fruits and vegetables are fresh and plentiful and I am looking for every excuse to consume them and new ways to combine them. Last weekend I had the pleasure of traveling to MIchigan in the height of blueberry season. I heard they grow the "best blueberries in the U S of A" up there and I love picking and eating my food straight off the vine/tree/shrub what have you. Naturally, I attacked those bushes with the force of a hibernation-hungry grizzly bear and returned home like a proud mama with a bag of blueberries the size of radio dials or volume knobs (choose your own comparison). I wanted to make something that was fresh and really let the blueberries speak for themselves and I didn't have room in the freezer for another batch of sorbet (oh the burden!) so I decided to make a fruit salsa. I chopped some kiwi, a little granny smith for crunch and tang, squeezed in some honey, lime and a little grated ginger too. The result was a fresh sweet tangy spicy salsa that required a rather large chip and a good deal of balance (to keep the blueberries from rolling onto the porch). I bet it would be really good with a simple chihuahua cheese quesedilla or scooped on to a spinach salad with gorgonzola.

Blueberry-Kiwi Salsa (you can call it a relish if you want)

2 kiwis, chopped 

1/2 granny smith apple, chopped rather small

1 cup fresh blueberries

1/2 thai hot chili chopped very fine

1 tsp. fresh ginger, grated

1Tbs honey

2 Tbs fresh lime juice

1. Gently mix all ingredients. Allow to chill in the fridge for an hour or so for the flavors to combine. Serve with big crunchy chips!

When summer gives you corn...

... and you need to bring a snack to a get-together...

... make these Double-Corn Corn Cakes!

I like seeing twins of the word "corn".

You may not know this about me, but I know corn cakes. I mean I really know them. When I worked as a cook at the catering company, I brought a recipe for Corn Cakes with Red Pepper Chutney with me and I made oodles and oodles of them. We're talking "multiply the recipe time 8 and to get 200 perfect little cakes out of it" kind of intimacy here. The recipe I used at the time was good but not as good as this one I just used for a recent Wednesday night Jazz get-together. I like the double-corn style (a little gritty from the cornmeal, a little sweet burst from the kernels) and that the cakes are a little thick, so they hold up to slatherings and dippings and late nights too. Speaking of slathering and dipping, I served these with an avocado-cilantro sauce and coriander-pickled onions; a red pepper chutney would also be nice, or something along those lines. This recipe only makes 22 or so 1 1/2 inch cakes so you should double it if you have a small crowd and I have a hunch that they would freeze well, too, though I didn't have any left over to test  this theory with. Great pic, no?

Double-Corn Corn Cakes

2/3 c. yellow cornmeal

3 Tbs. white wheat flour

1 tsp. sugar

3/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. baking soda

generous pinch cayenne

1/2 c. buttermilk

1 egg

1 cob's worth of corn kernels, blanched

vegetable or safflower oil for frying

1. Mix all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Beat egg and buttermilk in a separate bowl and stir into dry ingredients. Fold in corn kernels. 

2. Heat 1 Tbs. oil in a large skillet, swirling the pan to coat lightly with oil. Test the heat of the pan by dropping a tiny little bit of batter into the oil. If it spatters politely you're ready for action. (I always start by cooking just one cake, then I taste it for salt and seasoning; this also allows you to make sure the oil is the correct temperature.) The first cake should cook for about 3 minutes on side one and 1 minute on side two and be a nice dark golden color around the edges. Drop batter by tablespoonfuls into the pan, re-oil the pan between batches. You can fit about 6 cakes in a large pan comfortably, while having room to turn them. Having a small heat-proof spatula is ideal because the cakes are so small and it is best to turn them one at a time. Place cooked cakes on a tray or pan when they are  done cooking; you may want to keep them warm in the oven with a little foil on top if you are planning on serving them warm.

Make yo' sauce! (actually you should make your sauce first so it can chill in the fridge while the flavors mingle but whatever)

Avocado-cilantro Sauce

1/2 ripe avocado (nice n' soft like so's you can blend it!)

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1 cup lowfat plain yogurt, drained in a paper towel lined strainer for about an hour

salt (always)

a good squeeze of lemon or lime juice

a little sliver of jalapeno or thai chili, minced, if you'd like a little heat

1. Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender. Taste for tanginess, salt, and cilantro. I for one can load up on cilantro until the sauce is bright green but that's just me. The consistency should be a little thinner than mayonnaise or a little thicker than yogurt. (choose whichever comparison you are most familiar with!