How Sweet It Is!

We just have two rows of sweet corn in the garden.  I didn't want to plant a whole lot as we still have a number of bags of frozen sweet corn from last year - both on the cob and cut off the cob.  The corn grew very tall this year, some of it reaching heights of 10 feet tall.  The tall stature of the corn was call for concern when, after a thunderstorm, most of it laid down on top of the okra growing to the south of it.  Fortunately, the sun came out one day later and most of the stalks stood right back up.

Sweet corn is ready for picking when the silk turns from a pink or red color to a dull brown.  This one here?  She's ready for pickin'.

I have a little goofy ceremony I do every year.  The first ear of corn I harvest, I stand right there in the garden row and eat it raw right off the cob.  So sweet!  So good!  I want you to notice something about this variety I'm harvesting today.  It is called, "Country Gentleman" sweet corn.  How 'bout that name?  Even if it wasn't good, I think I'd buy it just for the name.  I think the world needs more Country Gentlemen.

Country Gentleman is a white shoepeg sweet corn.  Let's talk about that for a minute.  Shoepeg corn?  What is that?  Well, it is named that for a 19th century shoe-making term for its kernels resemble the wooden pegs that were used to assemble the soles to the upper part of the shoes.  Another fun fact is that shoepeg corn is a favorite bait for catching Sockeye Salmon.  We're not fishing with it, though.  We'll eat it all!

Notice the disorderly, mob rule-type organization of the kernels on the cob.  Have you ever seen such a thing?  It's nuts.  Other corn is arranged uniformly, in straight rows.  It's as if Country Gentleman corn said, "Ain't nobody got time for that."  

But out here on our little homestead farm, we share the bounty with the other inhabitants.  I tossed the shucks, silk, and stalk over the garden fence and the cows, goats, and chickens had a field day (pun intended) eating it.

Some of the corn is real nice and pretty, with the whole cob full.

Other ears have kernels missing, both by lack of pollination and by damage from worms.  We put the ears in a pot and blanched the corn, allowing it to boil for 9 minutes before removing it and putting into a ice water bathe to stop the cooking process.

I used a sharp knife to cut the small kernels from the cob, making sure to scrape the cob to get every single last bit of 'milk' out of the cob.

Just for grins, I put it into a big measuring cup as I went...  The first one was soon full.

It was mighty tempting to not eat a bunch more right off the cutting board.  But, not being a sockeye salmon, I was able to resist the temptation.

We packed up the corn in quart-sized freezer bags to put in the freezer.

My favorite dish to make with this is Corn Maque Choux.  So doggone good!!  I'll show you something else we did with it in a couple days.  Sweet corn is fun to harvest, but the next best thing is eating it.