Polenta Cakes with Heirloom Tomato Salsa-Harvest to Heat

I love fresh salsa, I could eat it by the spoonful.  It is so healthy-raw, vegan, packed with nutrients, delicious!  I normally don't make it since I have to admit that I didn't have a recipe until now.  

I noticed the book Harvest to Heat by Darryl Estrine and Kelly Kochendorfer at a heirloom seed expo I recently went to.  I was attracted by the stunning cover photo, but what was so interesting was the content of the book.  I believe in the farm to the table concept and this book is loaded with stories of chefs and the farmers and artisans that provide their ingredients,  not to mention the amazing recipes.  One of the recipes that jumped at me, begging asking me to make it asap, was this one, gluten free, vegan, and in time for the last heirloom tomatoes of the season and just plain appetizing.

The salsa is beautiful to look at (I am a firm believer that food has to be attractive), and so delicious to eat.  The addition of ground cumin adds a slight bitter and smokey note to the salsa, and is genius.  I added less heat that the recipe calls for, I would think that the original recipe is quite spicy.  The lemon juice add a great deal of acidity and keep the cilantro nice and green.  The variety of corn they suggest to use is called Flint Corn made from several varieties of hard corn kernels, also known as Indian corn, I used regular stone ground organic corn found at my local grocery store.

You can view the recipe by clicking on this link.

I can't wait to try more recipes from this book like Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes with Zucchini Pistou and Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette, or Stir-Fried Fava Shoots with Shrimp and Caramelized Shallots, or Milk Chocolate Semifreddo with Star Anise Carrot Cake. 

Doesn't this chicken seem so say "Oh Boy"?

Enjoy!