Corn on the Cob

Due to a picky-eater based childhood, I was never really into corn. Something about this summer (and the farmers' markets) has flipped the switch, and now, bam: I love corn on the cob. Here's how I make it, courtesy of In Praise of Leftovers:

Plain Jane Corn
So silly I’m telling you this, but somewhere along the line, I learned to cook corn this way, and nothing beats it. Put big old pot of water on the stove. Shuck your ears (or have your seven-year-old do it). Cut them in half if they won’t fit in the pot. Drop them in, and get the water to a boil. As soon as it boils, turn the water off, cover your pot, and let the corn sit for 10 minutes. Now it’s ready to eat, and not even a tad overcooked. Nothing worse than mushy corn. And if you have a grill going, you can throw it on there for a quick second for some smoke and grill marks. Oh–one more thing. Let your children completely annihilate whatever cube of butter happens to be in the butter dish. No sense trying to protect it. Slathering corn is its highest use, anyway.

Watermelon Salad

Aha! An actual new blog post about an actual recipe I actually made!

I've made this watermelon salad at least half-a-dozen times this summer. I've been obsessed with watermelon, and this dish will only work if you've got a nice ripe one.

Ingredients
Half of a large watermelon (seedless if you can)
1 vidalia onion
1 bunch of mint
Balsamic vinegar
Olive Oil
Lemon or lime juice
Salt & pepper

Yields
5+ servings

Directions
1. Cut the watermelon into bite-size pieces. I've found the best way to do this is to do the same way you do an avocado: slice a grid then scoop out with a spoon.

(photo from Simply Recipes)

2. Slice the onion. I like mine sliced very thinly, almost translucent. You can do a rouch chop (guacamole style) if you'd like or if you don't have the patience.
3. Chop the mint. I like to roll mine up and then cut it with kitchen scissors, chiffonade-style, but you can chop it how you like.

(photo from Wikipedia)

 4. Dump the watermelon, onion, and mint in a serving bowl. Toss with a dash of balsamic, a splash of olive oil, two or three squirts of lemon juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Tastes good cold from the fridge, or room temp. Would also be good with basil instead of mint, or adding cucumbers or tomatoes.

Printable recipe

Another new page!

I promise I will start posting actual recipes again soon. In the meantime, I've created a page for all the bookmarked recipes I've yet to try. Just click on the "Bookmarked Recipes" link in the menu bar or go to http://robynsrecipestotry.posterous.com/. It's still a work in progress, but I like having everything all in one place rather than bookmarked in a folder or starred in my gReader feed.