Mexican Style Grilled Corn Bruschetta

I found this recipe in a magazine.  I love grilled corn, so I knew there wasn't any way this could go wrong.  It's a delicious and very summery appetizer.

Ingredients:

2 ears corn

1/4 cup crema Mexicana

1/4 cup Cotija cheese

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp melted butter

1 tbsp lime juice

Cilantro (for garnish)

For crostini:

1 loaf French bread

1 garlic clove

3 tbsp olive oil

kosher salt

black pepper

Directions:

Shuck corn, rinse, and drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle each side with kosher salt.  Grill on high heat for about 5 minutes per side, turning until corn is nicely browned in parts.  Do not grill for too long, as the corn will become overcooked and chewy.  Remove from grill, set aside to cool.  Note - if you don't have a grill, you can also do this in a grill pan, I have done that and it takes about the same amount of time, maybe a minute or two longer.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice French bread diagonally and place on a cookie sheet.  Drizzle each side with olive oil, then sprinkle each side with salt and pepper.  Slice garlic clove in half and rub over each crostini, to impart a little garlic flavor.  Discard garlic.  Place the cookie sheet in the oven for about 5 minutes, just until the crosini are lightly toasted.

While crostini is cooking, slice the corn off the cob in wide strips into a bowl.  After much practice with different implements, I've found the best way to do this is with a bread knife.  Once finished, pour melted butter over the corn, add the lime juice, and mix.

Once the crostini has been removed from the oven and cooled until safe to handle, you can assemble your crostini.  If necessary, reheat the corn.  Using a butter knife, smear crostini with the sour cream, using enough to cover each toast with a thin layer.  Top with about a tablespoon of grilled corn per piece.  Sprinkle with cotija cheese, garnish with a couple of cilantro leaves, and serve.

Tips - This is basically a bruschetta version of the Mexican style corn you can get from street vendors.  For a more authentic flavor, you can sprinkle with cayenne or chili powder.  Also, you could substitute and use mayo instead of the crema - I personally think mayo is gross, but when I served this at a party, I was reminded several times that the street version has mayo!  Enjoy!