Dinner Party!

We had people over for dinner tonight -- it's been a while since we've cooked for anyone other than each other, and I was WAY off on the timing. (Oops.) But everything turned out well. I made black bean soup and cornbread and N made spicy rice and his secret-family-recipe chocolate cake with buttercream icing. I also made salad, inspired by Paula Deen's recipe. (Betcha never thought you'd hear me say that...)

My version:

2 ears of corn
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, chopped
3 green onions, minced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
Juice of 2 limes
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Boil the ears of corn until tender. Cool, then cut the kernels off and put into a bowl. (This would also be a great use of leftover corn on the cob.) Add the tomatoes, avocado and green onions. Blend together (in a blender -- alternatively, you can finely mince the cilantro and mix by hand, but you won't get as uniform a texture) the cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and salt, then mix gently with the vegetables. Serve immediately -- the dressing will slow the discoloration of the avocado but won't prevent it entirely.