corn and bean salad

Finally, something light! I've made this salad twice over the summer to bring to parties, since the fresh corn has been so wonderfully sweet. It was successful both times. Of course, you can easily use frozen or canned corn once the season changes.

Ingredients

Salad
3 ears of corn (about 2 cups)
2 cans of beans (black or black-eyed), drained
1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, minced
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in halves
1 tbs sugar

Dressing
I make this dressing whenever I'm running low on mustard; that way, I don't need to use another vessel.
1 almost empty jar of mustard (I like Trader Joe's hot and sweet mustard. I like it so much that my brother would send me three or four jars at a time once I moved away from CA [and therefore, moved away from TJs])
balsamic vinegar
olive oil
salt
fresh cracked black pepper

To make the dressing: leave the remaining mustard in the jar, fill it 1/3 of the way with olive oil and 2/3 of the way with balsamic vinegar. Screw the top back on and shake vigorously. Open it up, and add salt and pepper to taste. Simple!

To make the salad: put a large pot of water and 1 tablespoon of sugar on to boil. Once the water's boiling, add the ears of corn (make sure to remove the husks and strings). Boil for 15 - 20 minutes. Drain, then cut the corn off the cob.

Put the corn kernels, drained beans, minced jalapeno, blue cheese and tomatoes into a large bowl. Add the dressing (shake it again before you add it) in 1 tablespoon increments, tossing after each addition, until you get the coating of dressing that you desire. I find this dressing goes a long way.

I hope you and your friends enjoy this fresh summer treat!