Every week, your challenge is to create an eye-opening dish within our capricious themes and parameters. Blog your submission on Open Salon by Monday 10 a.m. EST -- with photos and your story behind the dish -- and we'll republish the winners on Salon on Tuesday. (It takes only 30 seconds to start a blog.) Please note that by participating, you're giving Salon permission to re-post your entry if it's chosen as a winner, and acknowledging that all words and images in your post are your own, unless explicitly stated. And yes, mashed potato sculpture counts as a dish. Emphatically.
This week, we asked for your corniest recipes.
THIS WEEK'S WINNER:
Golden-fried Corn Cakes With Smoked Tomato Sauce by Bellwether Vance: As a young girl, Bell helped with the corn harvest, a task of surprising danger, with results that rarely bred consensus -- some in the family liked their corn deep fried, some snuck bites raw. But today, these corn cakes make everyone happy.
THIS WEEK'S CATEGORY WINNERS:
In the Skillet-cooked category:
Granddaddy's Bacon-Fried Corn by Lucy Mercer: Living in the New South, Lucy writes, means you are still never far from the Old South, both disturbingly and beautifully. One of the reminders of the latter are the skillets passed down from generations, and the memories of food cooked in them, like this sauté of porky corny goodness.
In the On the Cob category:
Southeast Asian Spicy Corn by Aamna: Taking a cue from street vendors in Asia, Aamna roasts these cobs and then spikes them with lemon juice and a mix of peppers for a tart, savory, sweet and tingling snack.
In the Casserole category:
Maple Sugar and Fresh Corn Spoon Bread by Linda Shiue: Whether this dish is actually Southern or Northern is a matter of (very mild) controversy, but Linda reminds us that it's Native Americans who were really there first when it comes to corn, and so, in their honor, she tops this soft, fluffy soufflé-like casserole with a crackling crust of maple sugar.
PLUS, ALSO, TOO: THE EXCELLENT HONORABLE MENTIONS
Grits Cakes by Theresa Rice: Well, theoretically this SKC was about fresh corn, but Theresa checks in with her mother's fried grits cakes (and several crunchy, bacony variations) that were too exciting not to share.
Of Corn Salad and Marriage Proposals by Gavin Fritton: Get yourself a drink and spend a few minutes with Gavin on how to do your special friend right when they have to get on a cross-country flight.
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AND NOW FOR THIS WEEK'S CHALLENGE:
The summer produce just keeps rolling along, and, after a few weeks of mostly savory seasonal delights, it's the peaches and nectarines that are capturing us now with their perfume and dribbling-down-arm juiciness. So, this week, let's see how you like to treat stone fruit -- it's a real challenge, truly, to improve upon a sublime peach. But we think you're up to it!
Be sure to tag your posts: SKC Peaches (Please note that by participating, you're giving Salon permission to re-post your entry if it's chosen as a winner, and acknowledging that all words and images in your post are your own, unless explicitly stated. Adaptations of existing recipes are fine, but please let us know where the original comes from. And if you'd like to participate but not have your post considered for republication on Salon, please note it in the post itself. Thanks!)
Scoring and winning
Scores will be very scientific, given for appealing photos, interesting stories behind your submissions, creativity, execution and keenness.
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