Laptop Lunches #297

Asian baby corn salad (recipe below), marinated tofu from America's Test Kitchen Cooking for Two 2010, scallion pancakes, a homemade dipping sauce (for pancake and cucumber), and cucumber half moons.

This meal came from a realization that there were vegan things I ate when I wasn't vegan, and these scallion pancakes (bought in the freezer section of an Asian market) with marinated tofu were among those things. They were also frequently brought together with this Asian baby corn salad and cucumber. This lunch was two things: fantastic, and also, a nice connection to the self I was before this dietary quest began, a kind of reassuring visitor from my past, that tastes exactly like what I used to eat because it is what I used to eat. It didn't hurt that I packed it in the lunch box that started it all on this blog and is closing in on 300 documented uses.

I feel I've improved on the marinated tofu and I'll give you the recipe sometime, but the focus here is on that baby corn salad. I found a recipe for Asian baby corn salad on the internet many years ago and I made it many times, but then it mysteriously disappeared, along with the entire blog it lived on. I tweaked it slightly and veganized it, but it's still pretty much that recipe, which I regret I do not know the author of anymore. If you do know where it came from, let me know. Meanwhile, here it is.

Asian Baby Corn Salad
Serves: About 4


1 can baby corn, sliced into bite size pieces
14 cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 3/4 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon agave nectar or bee-free honey
1 1/2 teaspoons sesame seeds (I like black ones for contrast, but white is fine)

Mix corn, tomatoes, and scallions in a bowl; set aside.

Mix soy sauce, olive oil, sesame oil, and agave nectar. Drizzle dressing over veggies; toss to combine. Let sit or chill for at least a half an hour before serving.

When ready to pack/serve, garnish with sesame seeds.