This delightful composed salad of buttery corn, tangy crab salad and nutty heirloom rice is an elegant ode to summer in the South. The recipe is from chefs Michael Fojtasek and Grae Nonas. Slideshow: More Crab Recipes
How to Make It
Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the corn into a medium bowl; discard the cobs. In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over 2 tablespoons of cold water. In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Add the shallot and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the corn and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened and the corn is tender, about 5 minutes.
Scrape the corn into a blender. Add the gelatin and puree until smooth. With the blender on, gradually add the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter until incorporated. Strain the corn mixture through a fine sieve into a medium bowl and season the puree with salt. Let cool slightly.
In a medium bowl, whip the cream until firm. Fold into the corn puree and let cool completely. Refrigerate until chilled and set, about 45 minutes.
In a medium saucepan, bring 3 1/4 cups of water to a boil. Add the rice, bay leaf, 1 tablespoon of the butter and a generous pinch of salt and return to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until the rice is tender and the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Fold in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and season with salt.
In a medium bowl, mix the olive oil with the parsley, lemon juice and minced jalapeño and season with salt. Gently fold in the crab. Spoon the rice into shallow bowls and top with the crab salad and corn pudding. Garnish with sliced jalapeños and popped sorghum and serve with hot sauce.
Make Ahead
Notes
Popped sorghum is available at health food stores.