First guests of the summer

To me, this is the ultimate summer meal.  We had our friends over on Friday night and besides all the wine consumed, here is what was on the menu. 

Grilled fish (whatever rocks your boat)
Grilled pineapple salsa
Corn/radish salad
Mixed greens with cherries, candied walnuts, shaved goat cheese and white balsamic vinaigrette

Pineapple Salsa:
One pineapple, cut into long slices for easy grilling
1 lime – to get about 2 tbsp. of juice
1 jalapeno chopped into small pieces
1/2 red onion thinly sliced
a handful of cilantro leaves
kosher salt

Grill the pineapple slices for about 5 minutes so that they are charred but not too soft, slice into cubes.  Mix with the rest and serve room temperature.  Should stay for a few days in the fridge.

Corn/Radish salad

5 ears of corn, with kernels taken off
7 radishes, thinly sliced and cut into quarters
1 small jalapeno thinly sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 tbsp. lime juice
1/4 cup vegetable oil (better than olive oil because it makes the dressing lighter)

In a blender, put the jalapeno, honey, cumin, lime juice and vegetable oil and whirl until a thick dressing.  Take the kernels and saute them in a frying pan for a few minutes, until just cooked.  You could also grill the corn and take off the kernels.  Either/or.  Once the kernels have cooled, toss in the radishes and then toss in the dressing.  Serve at room temperature

To make the salad, you need to get a cherry pitter.  The rest is just as it says.  The dressing is 1 tbsp. dijon mustard, 3 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp. soy sauce, 1/2 tbsp. honey, 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil.  Whir in the blender until thick.  Add kosher salt for seasoning.