Krispy Fried Chicken with Confetti Corn and Roasted Vegetables

Part 1

Confetti Corn

Anyone who knows me knows that I despise corn. I don't like the texture, flavor orthe way it digests. That being said, I have to admit that Confetti Corn rocked my effin' socks off! It was so awesome I could barely stop eating it!

This recipe comes from Ina Garten's book Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics. Lady Boss felt I was jumping into the deep end a little too quickly. She thought it might serve me well to work with a less complicated book for a hot second. Since I was bound and determined to try Padma's recipe for fried chicken again (I screwed it up a few weeks ago) I thought I would pair it with sides from the Back to Basics book.

The Recipe

2 tbs of good Olive Oil

1/2 cup chopped red onion

1 small orange bell pepper 1/2 inch diced

2 tbs unsalted butter

kernels cut from 5 ears of yellow or white corn (4 cups)

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbs julienned fresh basil, minced fresh chives, and/or minced fresh parsley

The ingredients were easy for this but I had no idea how to properly chop, dice, mince or julienne anything! Thank God for YouTube! I can now say I know how to do all of those things! I'm still a little clumsy with a knife but I'm getting a hell of a lot better! A note to those of you that are as ignorant as me: be careful when you slice the kernels from the cob. They go everywhere! I think I'm gonna be picking up kernels off my kitchen floor for years! Oh! I also learned if you keep a little of the root of the onion still attached while chopping it up it stays together better and you don't cry as much!

Step 1: Heat olive oil over med heat in a large saute' pan Add onions and saute' for 5 minutes, until the onions are soft.

I think that sentence should have said "or until onions are soft". I think I may have cooked them a little too long!

Step 2: Stir in Bell Pepper and saute' for 2 more minutes

This is another place where I wondered if I may have screwed up...the pic in the book shows the orange peppers looking all vibrant and colorful. After about a minute MY peppers started loosing a little bit of their vibrance. What the hell? I hope it was because the pic was adjusted in photoshop or something...they tasted great by the way.

Step 3: Add butter to pan and let it melt. Over medium heat add corn, salt and pepper and cook stirring occasionally, for 5 to 7 minutes, until the corn looses it's starchiness.

Ummm...what the hell does "until the corn looses it's starchiness" mean??? How the hell am I supposed to know that? I just decided that starchiness equals obvious stiffness. I think I was pretty much right because in the end the corn was still crunchy but not raw! It tasted good too!

Step 4: season to taste, gently stir in the basil and green herbs and serve hot!

I have to tell you seasoning wasn't needed at all...especially after you add the herbs. You can taste every single thing you put in this dish and it all works together beautifully! It's really pretty too. I just wish my orange peppers looked like hers!