Corn and Heart of Palm Salad

I love potlucks! We had a potluck lunch at work last week, and while the company brought in the main dishes, everyone else brought in salads and desserts. I know I just admitted loving potlucks, but my love is for homemade potluck dishes, and have you noticed more and more potluck tables are populated by boring store-bought items? I don’t love those, but I have to admit resorting to a store-bought dish in a pinch. I know, bad huh?

I usually try to taste all of the homemade dishes, and lucky for me, someone always brings something interesting. Last week’s potluck was no exception. My co-worker Jill brought in this Corn and Heart of Palm Salad. I was in the kitchen while she prepared the salad, and when she needed someone to test for seasoning (okay, I kinda forced myself on her as a taste tester, but she was gracious and let me try her salad.) And, since I got a preview, I knew exactly where to head when it was time to eat.

I love the combination of the sweet corn, creamy avocado and crunchy hearts of palm in this salad. Once you stir the avocado into the salad, it mixes with the lemon juice to make a delicious almost creamy dressing. Jill says this is her go-to salad for potlucks and parties. If avocados aren’t looking good at the market, she just leaves them out and adds a bit of olive oil. I added the parsley for some color and flavor, but it wasn’t in Jill’s original recipe.

So, next time you need to bring something to a potluck, try Corn and Heart of Palm Salad. It's almost as easy as picking up something pre-made from the grocery store.  

Corn and Heart of Palm Salad
Printable Recipe 
2 14.5 ounce cans of sweet corn, drained (or 4 cups frozen corn, thawed)
1 14.5 ounce can hearts of palm, drained and chopped
¼ cup chopped red onion
¼ cup chopped parsley (optional)
3 avocados, cut into chunks
juice of one lemon
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Mix together the corn, hearts of palm, red onion, parsley in a medium bowl. Squeeze half of the lemon juice over the avocado, and add to the corn mixture. Add the rest of the lemon juice, salt and pepper to corn mixture. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper to taste. Let the salad sit for 15 or 20 minutes so the flavors can mingle, and serve.