Incredible corn recipes for farmers market favorite
Corn: It’s more than just a standard of measurement of elephants’ height. It’s also a most venerable vegetable.
And that is reason to celebrate. I decided to make corn in five different ways. That’s five of my six favorite ways to eat corn, the sixth being on the cob. Actually, my very favorite way is plucked fresh from the stalk and immediately eaten raw, but I have only had the opportunity to do that once.
If you ever get the chance, try it. But if you aren’t growing it yourself, be sure to ask the farmer first. Not only do you need his permission, he can tell you if the corn he grows is meant for people or livestock.
That being said, I made corn five ways that do not involve conversations with farmers you don’t know.
They were all winners. No, they were better than that. They were all Stanley Cup winners. Each was better than the last. I’m talking about seriously incredible recipes here.
I began with Corn Salad a la Mary Anne, which brings together all of the best flavors of the summer in one well-mixed dish. Fresh corn and fresh tomatoes blended with a bit of sweet onion and topped with summery cilantro. It’s like a farmers market on a plate.
Tying the flavors together is the sparing use of a vinaigrette. You can use your favorite vinaigrette if you choose, but I heartily recommend a bistro vinaigrette, which is the best vinaigrette I’ve ever made and maybe the best I’ve ever had.
It’s the only dressing we use at home.
For my second variation on a corn theme, I made a Southern staple: corn pudding.
I lived in the South for nearly 30 years, and in that time I probably consumed a small ocean of corn pudding. Most of it was sweet but some was savory, and I always preferred the savory kind. So when I discovered a recipe for savory corn pudding from Southern Living magazine, I knew that was the one I had to make.
(St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Tribune News)