Corn Pudding

With it being Thanksgiving and all, I figured this would be a good time to share my favorite Thanksgiving side dish - my mom's corn pudding!  It is sweet corn and eggy custardy.  It is made with ingredients that we normally keep in the kitchen, so it is convenient as well.  I just love it, and hopefully now you will too!

Corn Pudding!

Corn Pudding

Preheat oven to 375F.

Mix:
2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 stick melted butter

Add 3 eggs

Run through a strainer: 
2 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup milk

and add to mixture.

Mix in 2 17 oz. cans cream corn.

Pour into a 9x9 inch pan.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Fresh Corn from the Farmers' Market

Here in the city of Boston, we are fortunate to have two Farmers' Market options:

1) Dewey Square, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:30am - 6:30pm, May 24, 2012 - November 20, 2012

2) City Hall Plaza, Mondays and Wednesdays, 11am - 6pm from May 21, 2012 – November 21, 2012

MacArthur Farms at the City Hall Plaza Farmer's Market

Today, I meandered on over to the Farmer's Market at City Hall Plaza.  Having passed stalls of fresh veggies and baked goods, I arrived at the last (or first, depending upon your direction) - MacArthur Farms - and asked for help to select one nice ear to microwave at work for a snack.  The fellow who came around from behind the tables of produce felt a few ears and selected a firm one for me.  He broke off a bit of the stalk, ripped off a few outer leaves and stuck it in a plastic bag for me.  And for 50 cents, it was mine.

fresh corn!

I mentioned to him that I had heard that corn on the cob could be microwaved.  So, he told me to wrap it up in wet paper towels as is, and to microwave it for about a minute and a half.

Wrapped with wet towels before microwaving

After its visit in the microwave, I set it aside for a bit in order to avoid steam cooking my fingers.

All cooked and unwrapped

Thus, I was awarded with firm kernels that were plenty sweet, and well worth the calories.

Corn Casserole in a Jiffy!

I stopped by the supermarket on the way home for one sole reason - Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix. I knew just where to go - the baking aisle, the section where the mixes are, up on the top shelf... and there I saw... nothing! Like a child's lower jaw with a missing tooth, there was a gap among the line of Jiffy mixes where the corn muffin would have stood.

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, it being the Sunday before Thanksgiving and all. But I needed this key ingredient for one of my absolute favorite potluck recipes - Corn Casserole.

It is a super-simple recipe that I had found online many years ago from who knows where. It only has 5 ingredients (I've never added the optional egg), one of which is one of my favorite foods - corn, is pretty much just mix and bake, and tastes great!

The first time I made it for a potluck, I was asked whether it was a side dish or a dessert. Yeah, it is sweet, but not THAT sweet! ;) It bakes up puffy and rich... just try it!

Corn Casserole

1 stick butter, melted (may lessen butter if add egg – haven’t tried this yet myself)
1 can corn kernels (17 oz.), drained
1 can creamy corn (17 oz.)
1 egg (optional) (richer with)
1 cup sour cream
1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Melt butter. Mix in both cans of corn. Slightly beat egg before adding it to the corn. Mix in sour cream. Mix in the Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix.

Pour into a 9x9 inch baking pan. Bake for 1 hour (or more if necessary).

Vivian's Notes:

My lazy woman's method is to stick the butter in the oven in the pan just till it melts, then to stir everything directly in the baking dish. Of course you have to be careful of the hot pan!