This simple Corn, Tomato, and Spinach Salad is an ideal summer season facet dish for grilled meats or a burger night time! The salad options juicy cherry tomatoes, candy corn, creamy feta cheese, pink onion, and a home made creamy Basil Pesto Dressing. It is a tremendous versatile recipe that may be made with a number of variations and substitutions. Share it with your loved ones at summer season cookouts, picnics, potlucks, BBQs, or events.
Summer season salad with contemporary corn!
Regardless that it’s mid-September, so long as I can discover contemporary corn and peaches within the retailer, it nonetheless looks like summer season to me! I’ll maintain utilizing these contemporary elements till they’re now not in season. The star of the present of right this moment’s salad is nice yellow corn (I grilled mine, however be at liberty to simply boil it—it’s all good!). Toss in some cherry tomatoes, pink onion, creamy feta, and contemporary child spinach, and also you’ve acquired a straightforward winner. However what actually takes this salad to the following stage is the dressing. It’s a home made basil pesto dressing made with both store-bought or home made pesto, Greek yogurt, mayo, and some different tasty elements. This recipe is gluten-free, vegetarian, and filled with fiber! You’re going to find it irresistible! And, you may make it year-round utilizing frozen or canned corn as properly (I definitely plan to!). Listed below are some extra reader-favorite corn recipes that you simply may like to take a look at: a crowd-pleasing Avocado Corn Tomato Salad with Creamy Cilantro-Lime Dressing and a celebration favourite Mexican Avenue Corn Pasta Salad.
Variations
- Use your favourite greens, equivalent to spinach, arugula, or butter lettuce.
- Tomatoes. Use grape or cherry tomatoes or common chopped tomatoes.
- Cheese. You need to use both crumbled Feta cheese or Cotija. Each style scrumptious!
- Add Bacon, crispy prosciutto, or pancetta.
- Contemporary corn is the most suitable choice, in fact. Boil corn ears in a pot of water for five minutes, cool them off, then slice kernels off the cob with a knife.
- Frozen corn is an answer for when contemporary corn is out of season or when you possibly can’t discover contemporary corn.
- Canned corn can be an possibility, nonetheless, the freshly cooked corn tastes the perfect!
- Garnish. Use contemporary cilantro, chopped inexperienced onions, or chives as garnish.
- Add pasta. I like to recommend short-cut pasta, equivalent to orzo, orecchiette, fusilli (spiral pasta), bow-tie pasta (farfalle), penne, rigatoni, or rotini.
Add a lift of protein
Take this corn, tomato, and spinach salad to the following stage by including your favourite protein—it’s a straightforward technique to flip it right into a full meal! For meats, you possibly can’t go mistaken with seared rooster, juicy rotisserie rooster, grilled steak, or tender pan-seared steak strips (equivalent to flank steak!). If seafood is extra your type, attempt including shrimp, scallops, lobster, and even salmon. Beneath are a few of my go-to choices to make from scratch and so as to add to any salad. I’d additionally love to listen to your favorites within the feedback.
- Cajun Rooster with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce
- Shrimp Scampi
- Cilantro Lime Shrimp
- Garlic Butter Steak with Roasted Veggies
- Garlic Parmesan Crusted Baked Salmon and Asparagus
- Pan-Seared Trout (or Salmon) with Garlic Lemon Butter Herb Sauce
- Seared Scallops with Creamy Lemon-Caper Sauce
- Easy-cooked Skinless Boneless Rooster Thighs
Recipe Suggestions
- Make it a meal. Regardless that I favor to eat this salad as is, you possibly can add some protein to make it an entire meal. Rotisserie or grilled rooster involves thoughts, as grilled or pan-seared steak, salmon, or shrimp!
- Substitution for home made salad dressing. I really like the creamy, tangy, and contemporary home made salad dressing! Nonetheless, if you happen to’re quick on time, you possibly can take a shortcut and skip making your basil pesto. Use the store-bought pesto and blend it up with Greek yogurt + mayo to show it right into a creamy dressing.
What about leftovers?
- Retailer the salad and dressing individually. This will provide you with the perfect outcomes for future servings and it’ll maintain the spinach from wilting and turning into soggy. So, that is a very powerful tip! If it is already combined, no worries—simply observe the following steps.
- Use an Hermetic Container. Place the salad in an hermetic container to stop it from absorbing different fridge odors and to take care of freshness.
- Eat Quickly. Since contemporary spinach wilts rapidly, intention to eat the leftovers inside 1-2 days. The creamy pesto dressing might soften the spinach and tomatoes over time.
- Revive the Salad. If the salad turns into soggy, attempt refreshing it by including a handful of contemporary spinach or different crunchy veggies (equivalent to tomatoes and contemporary corn!) when serving it once more.
Different corn recipes you will love
- Mexican Avenue Corn Dip
- Corn Pasta Salad with Bacon and Creamy Pesto Dressing
- Creamy Rooster and Corn Pasta with Bacon
- One-Pan Garlic Butter Rooster with Zucchini and Corn
- Shrimp and Creamed Corn Dinner (30 Minutes, One-Pan)
Corn, Tomato, and Spinach Salad with Creamy Pesto Dressing
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Substances
Salad dressing
- ⅓ cup basil pesto (store-bought or home made)
- 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
Salad Substances
- 1.5 cups corn kernels (3 ears of grilled or cooked corn)
- 5 oz cherry tomatoes (yellow and pink, halved)
- 5 oz child spinach
- â…“ cup pink onion sliced
- 4 oz crumbled feta cheese
Directions
Make salad dressing
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In a mason jar, whisk collectively basil pesto with Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, and freshly squeezed lime juice. You may rapidly make basil pesto from scratch utilizing my recipe or your favourite recipe or use your favourite store-bought model.
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In case your dressing is simply too thick, add extra Greek yogurt, further lime juice (or lemon juice), or small quantities of water.
Meeting
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In a big bowl, mix child spinach, corn kernels (sliced off the cob), halved cherry tomatoes, and sliced pink onion.
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Distribute the salad into particular person bowls. High with crumbled feta cheese and drizzle with creamy pesto salad dressing.
Notes
- Corn. I used 1.5 cups of grilled/cooked corn kernels. That equals to three ears of corn (corn on the cob).
- Basil pesto. Use store-bought or home made basil pesto.
