By now, the season for corn on the cob is pretty much over. I’ve got whole cobs saved in the freezer, but most is cut off and frozen in pint containers. Now, what all is good to do with that golden goodness besides just serving it on the side?
Corn cheese bake: about 3 parts corn to one part shredded cheese, usually a mix of Cheddar and Jack, but hey, get experimental. Salt, pepper, a splash of cream or buttermilk, cover and bake 20 minutes or until cheese melts and slightly sets.
Corn chowder: saute’ a chopped onion in butter, add 2 c. corn, a large cubed potato, 2 cups water, cook until tender. Mix 2 Tbsp. corn starch in a cup of milk and add, stirring until thickened. Salt and pepper to taste.
At my house this wouldn’t have potato in it, have sometimes tried other starchy additions. Jerusalem artichokes were quite good.
Squash and corn:
2 lbs. yellow squash (the dish will be rather different if you choose winter squash over summer squash)
2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp. butter
½ c. chopped onions
2 tsp paprika
1 ½ c. fresh, canned or frozen corn kernels
2 eggs
¼ c. Parmesan cheese or more to taste
cube the squash (peel if hard) add salt and water and cook covered until tender. Saute’ the onions in the butter for 5 miniutes. Stir in paprika and corn, cook for 5 minutes, Add to the squash. Stir in eggs and cheese, heat until eggs just set.
This and the following two recipes were adapted from The Art of South American Cookery by Myra Waldo, which has several others on this theme.
Corn-Meat Pudding
2 Tbsp. olive oil
¾ c. chopped onions
½ c. chopped green peppers
1 lb. ground beef
2 tsp salt
¼ tsp ground chili pepper
½ cup seedless raisins
½ cup sliced black olives
4 egg yolks
1 ½ c corn kernels
1 tsp. sugar
4 egg whites, stiffly beaten
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat the oil in a skillet, saute’ the onions and green peppers for 5 minutes. Add meat, half the salt, and chili pepper, cook until browned, add raisins and olives. Turn into a greased casserole dish. Beat the egg yolks and remaining salt, stir in corn and sugar. Fold in the egg whites. Heap over the meat mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, or until puffed and browned.
Corn Custard
4 eggs
1 ½ c. milk
1 ¼ tsp salt
1/8 tsp. white pepper
1 ½ c. corn kernels
3 Tbsp. minced pimientos
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper, stir in corn and pimientos. Turn into a greased casserole dish or 6 custard cups. Place in a baking pan with an inch of water. Bake 1 hour for large dish or 40 minutes for individual cups, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Succotash: Cook corn and lima beans
together. Some add red or green bell peppers, or tomatoes or even squash and other veg. Garlic and onion, herbs may add interest. I quite liked my Three Sisters Succotash [ corn, beans, and squash are the “three sisters”, the foundational crops of Native American culture. They were often grown together: a group of corn stalks, beans climbing the corn, squash sprawling out and shading the soil for all.] Cook the cubed winter squash until almost soft before adding the corn and limas.
Cornbread with whole corn
(many more recipes if you search that term)
Picnic salad
(I miss this one.) combine 2 cups whole kernel corn, a can of black beans, rinsed and drained, one medium minced onion, a large diced tomato, a diced red bell pepper. Toss with lemon juice and olive oil, salt to taste. Shredded basil might be nice. A wonderful veggie main dish salad for picnics and potlucks.