Tee's Corn Pudding

Ok, so let's see. Creamed corn has corn and cream in it and tastes good but has a gross soupy texture. A corn pudding has corn and cream but I'm betting there won't be runny milk at the bottom. This is so exciting!

Tee's Corn Pudding
adapted slightly from MyRecipes
click to print

11 to 13 ears fresh corn, husks removed
1/4 c sugar
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c butter, melted
2 c whipping cream
6 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut kernels from cobs into a large bowl (about 6 cups). Scrape milk and remaining pulp from cobs; discard cobs.

I used a giant bowl and put my smallest cutting board in it at an angle. I held the corn perpendicular to the board and cut from tip to bottom; the kernels fell into the bowl. No giant mess.

Combine sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.


Whisk together butter, whipping cream, and eggs in a large bowl.

Normally you'd beat the eggs first, then added cream and melted butter. I'm the dishwasher around here so I melted the butter in the big bowl and then added cream and the eggs, saving me from having an extra dish to wash. It took a minute to chase the eggs around and get 'em all beaten but my new whip is indeed bad ass!

Gradually add sugar mixture to egg mixture, whisking until smooth.


Stir in corn.


Pour mixture into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish.

I don't know if the corn would eventually settle out in the dish but I helped it out by sort of swishing the corn around in the liquid so it was more evenly distributed.

Bake at 350° for 40 to 45 minutes or until set. Let stand 5 minutes.



The pudding turned out to be very pretty with just a slight crust on top. And I was right! You get the creamy goodness and all of the corn delight without soup. Plus it was so easy to make! Winner!

Cost:

• fresh corn: $8.69
• sugar: $0.24
• all-purpose flour: $0.02
• butter: $0.20
• whipping cream: $1.93
• eggs: $1.95

Total: $12.83 or about $1.60 for each of 8 generous servings.

Cornmeal-Crusted Scallops and Corn Relish

My experience with eating scallops is limited and I've never once made them before. They are expensive; the thought of taking $20 in bivalves and turning them into hockey pucks is horrifying. This recipe looks like a good start. I could do the relish first and then put all of my focus on the scallops rather than trying to do them in parallel, reducing the likelihood that I'll turn my cash into a pile of rocks.

Cornmeal-Crusted Scallops and Corn Relish
from Cooking Club of America
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1 small red bell pepper, diced (1/4 inch)
1/2 medium onion, diced (1/4 inch)
1/4 c cider vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp celery seeds
1/8 tsp mustard seeds
1 1/2 c corn kernels (from 2 medium ears corn)*
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tbsp cornmeal
12 oz. jumbo sea scallops
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp olive oil

Place bell pepper, onion, vinegar, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, celery seeds and mustard seeds in large skillet. Bring to a simmer over medium heat; cook 5 minutes or until pepper is slightly softened and liquid has almost evaporated, stirring frequently.

After four minutes, there was still plenty of liquid in the skillet but the pepper is already slightly softened.

Stir in corn; cook and stir 3 minutes or until corn is crisp-tender. Cool to room temperature.


In small shallow plate, stir together flour and cornmeal.


Sprinkle scallops with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper; toss scallops in flour mixture to coat.


Heat medium skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add oil; heat until hot.


Add scallops, in batches if necessary; cook 3 to 4 minutes or until light brown and center is barely opaque, turning once.


Serve scallops with corn relish.


TIP *If corn is very sweet, omit sugar from recipe.


My first time doing scallops and I'm impressed! They turned out perfectly, tender and moist with just-crisped, caramelized exteriors, and opaque interiors, and loaded with flavor.

The vinegar in the relish became wearisome very quickly as it is quite a pungent flavor. I'd ease up on that quite a bit and/or have a milder flavored side dish to accompany. The scallops should be the star here, but the relish is just too in-my-face. Eating dinner, I'm thinking anything else would be good. Broccoli, French fries, cole slaw. Maybe that's a sign that I should have prepared a side to accompany.

Cost:

• red bell pepper: $0.92
• onion: $0.21
• cider vinegar: $0.08
• sugar: $0.03
• ears of corn: $0.78
• cornmeal: $0.03
• jumbo sea scallops: $18.16
• olive oil: $0.06

Total: $22.27 or about $10.14 for each of two servings.

Fresh Shrimp and Corn Chowder Salad with Bacon

Corn chowder salad? That sounded a little goofy to me but I gave it a try anyway and I'll tell you, I was blown away. This is summer exemplified, like a delicious bowl of sunshine and rainbows. The textures and flavors are simply fantastic. The colors are indescribable; this is one of those times when I really wish my photography was much better so you could really see how beautifully this turned out. Try it so you can see for yourself, seriously.

The only changes I made to the original recipe was to make the original quantity of dressing but use only half. It turned out a little runny and I wasn't making soup. I have a hang-up about saucy food anyway, so take that into consideration if you love dressing. It is tasty.

Fresh Shrimp and Corn Chowder Salad with Bacon
adapted from Cooking Club of America
click to print

2 medium ears of corn, shucked
12 oz. red potatoes, unpeeled, chopped (1/2 inch)
1 lb. shelled, deveined uncooked shrimp (31 to 35 count)
1 c cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
1/3 c chopped red onion
1/3 c chopped fresh basil
1/4 lb bacon slices, cooked, coarsely crumbled, divided

DRESSING
1/4 c mayonnaise
3 tbsp canola oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp grated lemon peel
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Cook corn in large pot boiling water 3 minutes.


Add potatoes. Continue cooking 5 minutes or until corn and potatoes are almost tender.


Add shrimp; cook 2 to 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink and potatoes and corn are tender.

My shrimps turned pink immediately!

Drain; cool under cold running water. Drain well; pat dry.

I didn't run water over my shrimp, potatoes and corn. Instead, I drained them and then spread them out on a clean kitchen towel. The heat dissipated and the water evaporated, eliminating my need to pat anything.

Meanwhile, whisk dressing ingredients in small bowl.


With a sharp knife, cut corn off cob into large bowl; add potatoes and shrimp.


Add tomatoes, onion, basil and half of the bacon. Gently stir in half the dressing; sprinkle with remaining bacon. Serve with additional dressing on the side, if desired.




This is just fantastic! The dish is beautiful with vibrant colors, the flavors just scream summertime freshness and the varying textures are impeccable. Having used only about two-thirds of the runny dressing, it is just a very light coating however it does the job of adding in a lemony-zing. Did using homemade mayo boost this dish into the winner's circle? I don't know that it contributed that much of a positive but certainly it didn't hurt.

The only thing that seemed unnoticeable was the crushed red pepper and maybe it was just sitting at the bottom of the dressing bowl. Or my peppers are duds.

After resting in the fridge about 6 hours, this salad is even better than it was freshly made. It's potato-y like a potato salad but the light dressing is amazing. And shrimp in there? Hard not to sit down with the entire bowl and get busy with a spoon. Next time I might double the batch because it would be fantastic for lunches. And dinner. And hell, even breakfast.

Cost:

• ears of corn: $0.78
• red potatoes: $0.52
• shrimp (31 to 35 count): $5
• cherry tomatoes: $1.29
• red onion: $0.25
• basil: $1.44
• bacon: $3.36
• mayonnaise: $0.50
• canola oil: $0.33
• lemon: $0.35

Total: $13.82 or about $2.76 for each of five 1.5-cup servings