Spanish Wine And Fresh Corn Salad

I must tell you, I am really enjoying the wines from Spain this summer. They are light, crisp, aromatic, with balanced acidity and pair so nicely with grilled, lightly marinated chicken or a nice piece of fish. My last evening summer sipper was a 2006 Inspiracion Pampano from the winery Agricola Castellana, in the D.O. of Rueda, located in La Seca which is in the South of Valladolid, Spain. This wine was made from the Verdejo grape which produces a nice light crisp wine that graced my palate, along with tastes of pear and a hint of grass. This Verdejo wine had an alcohol volume of 13%, which surprised me as I did not smell or taste any alcohol. It was a nice medium bodied, elegant, soft wine with a nice little bite at the finish. A lovely wine for under $10.00.

This past weekend, Mike and I paid a visit to our good friend Al who had a birthday last week. So a celebration was due! Of course we chilled the wine, fired up the grill, and enjoyed a summer evening on his deck. The guys took care of grilling out some nice strip steaks and I was in charge of the side dishes. I made my "cannot go wrong" Southwest Potato Salad and tried a new recipe for a potato salad that had BBQ sauce in it. Both of these I will feature soon on my site, but for now I want to tell you about a Corn, Cucumber & Pepper Salad that used many of the veggies that I purchased at the Farmers Market on Saturday.

Corn,Cucumber And Pepper Salad

4 ears of fresh corn, husks left on and microwaved for 3-4 minutes just to get it a little cooked, then cool corn

1 bunch of green onions, I did a big bunch as we like green onions

1 large jalapeno pepper chopped, I took out some of the seeds

1/2 cup green pepper chopped

1/2 cup diced cucumber

1/2 cup roasted red pepper chopped, you could use the ones from the jar if needed

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, I also added a shake of dried

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper to taste.

After the corn has cooled, shuck and remove silk. Slice corn into a bowl.

Add the rest of the veggies and toss.

Make the sauce of mayo, mustard, thyme, and Worcestershire sauce and stir into the corn mixture.

Chill for about 2 hours or so before serving.

This was such an easy and very tasty salad to make for a summer BBQ or picnic. All the fresh veggies give it a nice crunch! Enjoy!

Cheers!