Recently, Chris and I spent an afternoon in one of my favorite spots in London, Borough Market. We happened to go after a spin class, which was good and bad. We ended up not only eating all the samples of cheese and olive oil but some of my favorite super indulgent sandwiches: duck confit on cibatta and a pork burger with a stilton spread, red onion marmalade and arugula.

Since we overindulged at lunch, I wanted to have a light dinner. So often, I think we get stuck in the rut of a meat-veg-starch-dinner and during the summer months with so much amazing fresh produce available, a great salad and maybe something on the grill is all you need. It’s tomato time of year and we bought a bounty of heirlooms at the market. With just a few simple fresh ingredients this salad comes together as a real show stopper.

Also, today it’s National Burger Day here in the UK, at least according to the peeps at Tweat Up so keep this salad in mind for a perfect burger side dish at your next BBQ. We are heading to this burger festival tonight but if you don’t have the luxury of trying burgers with pineapple bacon jam, a burger called the dead hippie, or burger ice cream!?!, take inspiration and start planning your next cook out now!

Tonight’s line up better be up for a good challenge, because I recently had the best burger I ever ate. Have you heard of the elusive Holeman and Finch burger in Atlanta? The one where they cook up only one round of 24 double cheeseburger at 10pm? And the ones that are said to be pee-you-pants-good? You snooze you lose. But… Lucky me. They also have a stand at the Braves’ Turner Field. All I can say is if they were this good cooked a bit more en masse at a ball game I can only imagine getting my hands on one of those coveted 24. I could barely slow down to take a picture of my final few bites.

But enough indulgence. Let’s make a great salad. Start by reducing some balsamic vinegar at a low simmer until it is reduced by half and syrupy.

Grill the corn over medium heat. This will take about twice as long on a grill pan as it will if you have an open flame.

Now using just a few really good fresh ingredients, you’ve got a beautiful summer salad.

I both sliced and wedged my tomatoes so that I added some dimension to the platter. Then just sprinkled with the corn, blue cheese, and chives.

Drizzle with balsamic and olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper and you have the most gorgeous dish on your hands.

Heirloom Tomato, Corn, & Blue Cheese Salad

Serves 4

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

2 ears corn

4 heirloom tomatoes

3 oz. blue cheese

1 ½ Tbs. chives, thinly sliced

2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil

Add balsamic vinegar to a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half. Reserve.

Heat a grill to medium. Remove husks and silks from the corn. Grill until the corn is evenly lightly charred, rotating frequently. This will take about 7 minutes on an open flame but may be longer on a grill pan. Slice the corn kernels off the cob and reserve.

Core the tomatoes and slice into a variety of wedges and horizontal slices and arrange on a platter. Sprinkle with the corn, blue cheese, and chives. Drizzle with olive oil and the reduced balsamic vinegar. Season with flake salt and fresh cracked pepper.