barbecue season is coming friends. with a summer baby on the way, many a baby bbq are now on our late spring/early summer calendar and i am STOKED. i LOVE barbecue food. ALL of it. the messier the better and in preparation for all that grilling goodness, i’m working on my perfect summer side dish game.

one of my all time favorites is corn. white corn to be specific. it has such a juicy sweetness to it that i will chow down on it with no salt, butter or other corn condiments. now, if you do it up with this zesty avocado & greek yogurt sauce and some crumbled cotija cheese, it will BLOW YOUR MIND.

now, if you aren’t all about that mess, you can easily serve this corn OFF the cob by simply slicing the kernels from the ear of corn once you have finished cooking the corn. if you are all about eating with your hands, no extra step required.

elote style white corn

serves: 4

prep time: 5 minutes

active time: 25 minutes

total time: 30 minutes

ingredients: 4 ears white corn, (you could sub your favorite corn or whatever you can find) husks removed and cut in half. half an avocado, completely smashed so you don’t have any lumps. 1 cup greek yogurt. 2 tbs lime juice. .25 cup finely crumbled/grated cotija cheese. 2 tbs kosher salt. .5 tsp freshly ground pepper. .5 tsp turmeric. .5 tsp chili powder. .25 tsp cayenne pepper. 2 tbs cilantro leaves. nasturtium petals, optional. large pot of water (if you have room on your grill and prefer to grill your corn, you could do that instead of boiling. cook time on your grilled corn will be about 10 minutes on a hot grill as opposed to 25 minutes of boiling).

start by adding all but 1 tsp of the salt to the pot of water and get it boiling. combine the remaining salt with the pepper, turmeric, chili powder and cayenne pepper to make a spice blend. add the spice blend, the avocado and the lime juice to the greek yogurt.

stir until everything is well combined and you have a creamy sauce.

when your water is boiling, add the corn to the pot and cook till the kernels are tender (20-25 minutes). while the corn cooks, finely chop the cilantro and the nasturtium petals together and set them aside (nasturtium petals are a little spicy so they add great seasonal flavor and color to your corn).

once your corn has cooked, remove it from the heat and allow it to dry. if you are serving the kernels with out the ear of corn, now is the time to carefully (with a sharp knife) slice the kernels away from the ear of corn. lay your ears of corn or just the kernels on to your serving platter.

spoon the creamy sauce over the top of the corn. sprinkle with cotija, cilantro and flower petals.

serve hot and enjoy.

elote style white corn

serves: 4

prep time: 5 minutes

active time: 25 minutes

total time: 30 minutes

ingredients: 4 ears white corn, (you could sub your favorite corn or whatever you can find) husks removed and cut in half. half an avocado, completely smashed so you don’t have any lumps. 1 cup greek yogurt. 2 tbs lime juice. .25 cup finely crumbled/grated cotija cheese. 2 tbs kosher salt. .5 tsp freshly ground pepper. .5 tsp turmeric. .5 tsp chili powder. .25 tsp cayenne pepper. 2 tbs cilantro leaves. nasturtium petals, optional. large pot of water (if you have room on your grill and prefer to grill your corn, you could do that instead of boiling. cook time on your grilled corn will be about 10 minutes on a hot grill as opposed to 25 minutes of boiling).

start by adding all but 1 tsp of the salt to the pot of water and get it boiling. combine the remaining salt with the pepper, turmeric, chili powder and cayenne pepper to make a spice blend. add the spice blend, the avocado and the lime juice to the greek yogurt. stir until everything is well combined and you have a creamy sauce. when your water is boiling, add the corn to the pot and cook till the kernels are tender (20-25 minutes). while the corn cooks, finely chop the cilantro and the nasturtium petals together and set them aside (nasturtium petals are a little spicy so they add great seasonal flavor and color to your corn). once your corn has cooked, remove it from the heat and allow it to dry. if you are serving the kernels with out the ear of corn, now is the time to carefully (with a sharp knife) slice the kernels away from the ear of corn. lay your ears of corn or just the kernels on to your serving platter. spoon the creamy sauce over the top of the corn. sprinkle with cotija, cilantro and flower petals. serve hot and enjoy.

winter is far from my favorite season. but soup season, now that is a different story. i have big giant heart filled eyes when it comes to soup. and nothing says soup like days of rain.

now, consecutive days of rain in orange county are a serious rarity. but in the last few weeks we have had multiple strings of rainy days and it has been glorious. and soup filled.

my childhood rainy days were filled with bowls full of body warming clam chowder. thanks to the combo of ingredients in my kitchen and my glorious soup memories, my adult soup dreams came true with this hearty and delicious salmon and corn chowder.

salmon + corn chowder

serves: 6-8

prep time: 15 minutes

cook time: 45 minutes

total time: 1 hour

ingredients: 1.5 lb salmon, skin removed and cut into chunks. 3 pieces bacon, sliced in .25 inch slices. 2 fresh ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob (or 1 pack of frozen corn, thawed). 1 lb red potatoes (or other waxy potatoes) cut into .5 inch cubes. 1 medium brown onion, diced. 2 carrot stalks, diced. 3 garlic cloves, minced. 5 cup dry white wine. 4 sprigs thyme leaves, stems discarded. .5 tsp ground fennel seeds. 2 tbs flour. 2 cups seafood stock (you could sub chicken or veggie if you can’t get your hands on seafood). 3 cups whole milk. 1 cup whole milk. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. finely chopped chives for garnish. large heavy pot. slotted spatula.

start by heating your pot to a medium heat and add in your bacon. allow your bacon bits to cook till they are nice and crispy. about 5-7 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes. once your bacon is cooked, use a slotted spoon to remove it from the pan to a paper towel to dry off the excess grease.

season your fish with half the salt and pepper and add the pieces to the hot pot. cook until the fish is just cooked through, about 3-4 minutes a side.

once the fish is cooked (or even a little bit under since it will continue to cook once added back to the soup), remove it from the pot and set it aside in a bowl.

add the onion, celery, potato, corn and garlic to the hot pot. season with half the remaining salt and pepper. cook until the onions are translucent, about 8-10 minutes. stir every couple minutes so they cook evenly. stir in the flour until completely combined into the veggies.

deglaze (scrape up all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan) the pan with the white wine. add in the fennel and thyme.

when all the wine as cooked off, pour in the stock. bring the stock to a boil and then pour in the milk & cream. season with the remaining salt and pepper.

bring the liquid back to a boil and immediately reduce it to a simmer. chop up your bacon bits into smaller crumbles. add all but a tbs of bacon back to the soup. reserve the rest for garnish.

add the salmon and all it’s juices back to the pot. once the liquid simmers once again, turn off the heat.

serve topped with a couple pinches of chives and some bacon crumbles.

xo, a

salmon + corn chowder

serves: 6-8

prep time: 15 minutes

cook time: 45 minutes

total time: 1 hour

ingredients: 1.5 lb salmon, skin removed and cut into chunks. 3 pieces bacon, sliced in .25 inch slices. 2 fresh ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob (or 1 pack of frozen corn, thawed). 1 lb red potatoes (or other waxy potatoes) cut into .5 inch cubes. 1 medium brown onion, diced. 2 carrot stalks, diced. 3 garlic cloves, minced. 5 cup dry white wine. 4 sprigs thyme leaves, stems discarded. .5 tsp ground fennel seeds.  2 tbs flour. 2 cups seafood stock (you could sub chicken or veggie if you can’t get your hands on seafood). 3 cups whole milk. 1 cup whole milk. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. finely chopped chives for garnish. large heavy pot. slotted spatula.

start by heating your pot to a medium heat and add in your bacon. allow your bacon bits to cook till they are nice and crispy. about 5-7 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes. once your bacon is cooked, use a slotted spoon to remove it from the pan to a paper towel to dry off the excess grease. season your fish with half the salt and pepper and add the pieces to the hot pot. cook until the fish is just cooked through, about 3-4 minutes a side. once the fish is cooked (or even a little bit under since it will continue to cook once added back to the soup), remove it from the pot and set it aside in a bowl. add the onion, celery, potato, corn and garlic to the hot pot. season with half the remaining salt and pepper. cook until the onions are translucent, about 8-10 minutes. stir every couple minutes so they cook evenly. stir in the flour until completely combined into the veggies. deglaze (scrape up all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan) the pan with the white wine. add in the fennel and thyme. when all the wine as cooked off, pour in the stock. bring the stock to a boil and then pour in the milk & cream. season with the remaining salt and pepper. bring the liquid back to a boil and immediately reduce it to a simmer. chop up your bacon bits into smaller crumbles. add all but a tbs of bacon back to the soup. reserve the rest for garnish. add the salmon and all it’s juices back to the pot. once the liquid simmers once again, turn off the heat. serve topped with a couple pinches of chives and some bacon crumbles.