When I think of a nice long holiday weekend, I think of sunshine (hopefully here in the PNW), BBQ's and family. So if you're like me and you plan on spending some time with some great friends or family, you should also plan on bringing this delicious Roasted Corn Salsa! It was really easy to make and I honestly cheated a little when it came to the whole "roasting" thing and it still turned out amazing. 

For this recipe you will need a few simple ingredients: 

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 large ears corn
• 1/4 red onion, diced
• 2 ripe tomatoes, seeds slightly removed and diced
• 1 -2 Serrano or jalapeno pepper (more or less depending on desired spice level), seeded and minced
• sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
• juice of one lime
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

To start off preparing this salsa dish I began with cheating. I was initially thinking about grilling the corn but I was feeling a little unmotivated to go outside and start up the grill and I was also running short on time to complete this dish before heading out to a party. So what was my solution...  Cheat on the roasted corn and add some roasted jalapenos. You totally don't have to do this step but I've been wanting to practice "roasting & sweating" peppers so I decided to add this into the mix. 

DIRECTIONS:

Start by husking your corn and then throw it into a pot to boil for about 15 mins or until tender. While your corn is boiling you can now choose to roast your peppers or skip this step and begin chopping the rest of your veggies.

If you choose to roast your peppers follow these steps:

1. Cut your peppers in half and remove the seeds and membrane

2. Place the jalapeno peppers, cut side down, on a baking sheet. If desired, line the baking sheet with aluminum foil.

3. Set and preheat the oven to broil. Place the jalapeno peppers on one of the upper racks of the oven. Cook for 7-10 minutes. The skin will wrinkle and start to char and bubble, this is what you want! There is incredible flavors with this charring. Watch the peppers though, because if they are in the oven too long, they will burn more than you want. The charring and bubbling on top is good but any burning of the inner flesh can cause the peppers to have an ‘off’ taste.

4. Right after the peppers come out of the oven, place them in a ziploc bag and seal it. This causes the heat in the jalapeno peppers to create steam and "sweat". This further cooks the peppers and pulls the skin away from the flesh of the peppers. Keep them in the sealed bag for a minimum of 20 minutes.

5. Remove the jalapeno peppers from the bag and pull the skin off the pepper. Discard the skins. Use the peppers in any dish that you desire the sweet heat of the roasted jalapeno pepper.

Next, drain your boiled corn and pat them dry with a clean towel. If you roasted your peppers than your oven is already hot and ready for your corn. Simply lay the corn on a baking sheet and place in the oven to broil on high for 5-10 mins. Turn your corn about half way through so that is gets nice and toasty on all sides. 

Once the corn is roasted on all sides, remove it from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Once the corn has cooled, slice off all the corn from the cob and place in a bowl with all your other chopped ingredients. 

Now, add the lime, salt and pepper and stir all your ingredients together. Now take this time to taste your salsa, you might need to add a little more lime or salt and pepper. At this point your Roasted Corn Salsa is ready to eat and enjoy. Sometimes I like to cover and allow it so sit in the fridge for an hour or so so that the flavors continue to develop together, but if you don't have time to do this, no worries it is so tasty right away too! 

Something I also love about this recipe is that it is Really easy to double or triple if you are making it for a big group!

Do you have any fun plans for this long weekend or any traditions? We are keeping it pretty simple around here. We will probably be heading out to my grandpa's property and having a little bonfire (which is my favorite thing to do, call me Kendra the Pyro). Hopefully the sun will be out and we can dig into this salsa while roasting some hot dogs and relaxing before work starts back up again.