About a month ago, my grandma gave my fiancè and I a grill as a house- warming present. Given my fiancè’s love of fire and mine of cooking, this was the perfect gift for the two of us. And though we have yet to have her over for a grilled dinner to say thank you (on the to-do list, Nan), we have been practicing for the occasion. We’ve decided that there are few things in life better than a summer night full of grilling, complete with a few beers and maybe throwing the football around in the backyard. Our dog Fin has also decided this is one of her favorite things, on account of all the char-grilled tablescraps she gets to enjoy. So, rewind a few sentences and recall my fiancè’s love of fire. He also has a chef-crush on Jamie Oliver, most recently of Jamie’s Food Revolution fame. And when he saw Jamie Oliver’s podcast about grilling corn over an open fire, well, let’s just say: it had to happen. In our backyard. As soon as humanly possible. And there absolutely had to be burning of husks. The universe converged, bringing all these things together into one night of backyard dining where, miraculously, we lost neither limb nor living quarters to a corn-grilling-induced fire. The only victims? Those poor corn husks, who were so deliberately engulfed in flames, much to the delight of my fiancè and the small crowd of onlookers who had gathered to witness the epicurean event. So yesterday, when my brother called to say he had a new recipe for grilled corn and we had to try it, well, guess who was first to willingly oblige and offer up his grill? We have now tried two very similar recipes for grilled corn, and I must say—they’re both quite fantastic. Here’s the general gist of things (a little hybrid of the two recipes), followed by links to the two original recipes we tested. Grilled, Spicy & Cheesy Sweet Corn 4 fresh ears of corn, in their husks 6 tablespoons butter, melted 1 jalapeno, diced 1 cup fresh parmesan cheese, shredded 1 cup sour cream chili powder, to taste lime wedges Fire up the grill. While the grill is warming up, prep your ingredients. You’ll be rolling the hot-but-manageable corn in toppings, so put the sour cream on one large plate, and the cheese and minced jalapeno on another. Have the chili powder ready in a shaker and the lime wedges nearby. Pull the husks back from the ears, so that the corn is bare but the husks are still connected. The husks serve as a nice handle for eating the corn later. When the grill is hot, throw on the corn and brush each ear with the melted butter. Cook for 8-10 minutes, turning and brushing with butter, until the corn gets a little bit of char and you smell the faintest scent of popcorn. Remove the corn from the grill, and roll first in the sour cream. Tap the corn gently to remove some of the excess sour cream, then roll it in the cheese and jalapeno. Sprinkle with the chili powder, to taste, and garnish with a squeeze of lime juice. Serve it hot and enjoy your guests’ reactions to the messy grilled treat. This is not a dish to eat indoors, folks. For more, check out: Jamie Oliver’s BBQ Recipe Sweet Corn “Drippy Mexican Sweet Corn” at the Splendid Table (Image: Flickr member tinabasgen, licensed under Creative Commons.)