Summer Corn Cakes with Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa

 This is a great side dish with lots of contrasting flavors!  I found this recipe last week at Janet's Blog , I love visiting her blog; she gives me a lot of inspiration with her dishes.  After reading Janet's blog I discovered she got the recipe from Rebecca's Blog and after reading her blog I found out she got the recipe from a new cookbook that I already had from Sara Foster / Sara Foster's Southern Kitchen.  Isn't it funny how you can look at something and not see something like this great recipe until somebody else makes it!!  That is what I love about this wonderful blogging world!!

 These are the corn cakes all made up in my new oven with a warming drawer!!  I love this feature of my new stove...it is actually a double oven, but the 2nd oven is small and I think I will use it often as my warming drawer.

The corn cakes with the delicious tomato and avocado salsa went great with pork chops for our Father's Day menu!  The leftovers were great the next day too!

Corn Cakes - makes 1 dozen -- I got 13 :)
3 ears corn, shucked
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup thinly slice fresh basil
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons well-shaken buttermilk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Canola oil, for frying

Cut the corn from the cobs into a large bowl and scrape the stripped cobs with the back of the knife to release the juices into the bowl.

Place 2 cups of the corn kernels in a food processor or blender and pulse several times, until the corn is slightly pureed but still chunky.  Scrape into the bowl with the remaining corn kernals and add the flour, cornmeal, onion, basil, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and pepper to taste and stir to mix.  Add the eggs, buttermilk, and butter and stir just to combine; do not overmix.

Place a large skillet over medium heat, add just enough conola oil to barely cover the bottom, and heat until sizzling hot.  One heaping tablespoon at a time, scoop the batter into the skillet.  Cooking in batches of 4 or 5 to avoid overcrowding, fry the cakes 1 to 2 mintes per side, until golden brown.  Drain on paper towel and then place in the preheated 200 degree oven to keep warm while cooking the remaining corn cakes.  Serve warm topped with a heap of the salsa.

Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa

1 large tomato, cored and chopped
1 scallion, trimmed and minced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, cored, seeded, and diced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 garlic clove, smashed and minced
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar or white wine vinegar
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced

Place the tomato, scallion, jalapeno, cilantro, basil, garlic, lime juice, olive oil, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste in bowl and stir to mix.  Refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve, or for up to 2 days.  Just before serving, add the avocado and mix gently.