Corn Chow-Chow

Chow-chow (not to be confused with the dog breed) is a relish that can be made of any variety of vegetables - cabbage, carrots, peas etc, and comes from the French word for cabbage, chou. Here, corn takes center stage. You can let this chow-chow stand alone as a side dish, or serve it condiment-style over corn bread, pinto beans, or in place of relish on top of vegan hot dogs.

Bring one cup water to a boil in a saucepan. Add 2 cups frozen corn; cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together one tablespoons whole-grain Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon cane syrup (available near agave nectar and other sweeteners in the supermarket), 2 teaspoons cider vinegar and 1/2 tsp. celery salt.

I just assumed that I had celery salt in my spice cabinet, without bothering to check. I actually only had the real deal - celery seeds - but since celery salt is just celery seeds mixed with salt and sold commercially, I figured that substituting one for the other made no difference.

As for the mustard, actual Dijon lists sugar in the ingredient list. In the interest of being 100% vegan and not knowing if the sugar was refined with animal products, I went with the stoneground organic mustard from Westbrae Natural instead: www.westbrae.com

Finely dice 1/3 cup onion and 1/4 cup red bell pepper and add to the mustard mixture, tossing to coat. Add the corn and toss to coat.

Let this stand at least 30 minutes before serving, but the longer it stands, the more the flavors will meld and the corn will "pickle" and the more delicious it will be.

1/4 cup is 50 calories.

Cost:
frozen corn $2.99
mustard $2.69
cane syrup $3.99
onion $0.52
red bell pepper $2.94