Scalloped Corn

I was so pleasantly surprised by the somewhat early arrival of sweet corn at the local farmer’s market last week, I almost didn’t know what to do. Am I ready for this? Is it even real? Can it be any good yet?

But of course I bought the obligatory dozen ears and grinned all the way home. We ate it all before the next farmer’s market, some grilled as whole ears and eaten right off the cob, some in a quesadilla with chile and bacon (!), and most of it in this scalloped corn recipe that I adapted from Heart of the Artichoke by David Tanis (the same book from which I got this jam recipe.)

I made this recipe once last year, but I had some extreme chile peppers that turned out to be wonderfully spicy, but too much so for this recipe, at least in the quantity I used them. I sensed this was a great recipe, however, and have been looking forward to fresh, sweet ears to try it again.  I tamed things a bit for this year’s trial, and the rich, creamy and, well, corny nature of the dish was allowed to show through much better. 

 

It’s wonderfully delicious, quite rich with plenty of butter and half and half. I cut out some of that half and half and replaced it with sour cream, and loved the combination. It’s really all about the corn, though, and every buttery, creamy bite proves that point.

I think you could make this dish as rich or as light as you want by playing with the fat content of your added dairy. You could also add some herbs, maybe bacon, perhaps tomatoes. I liked celebrating the first ears of 2018 sweet corn (plus a bit of chile pepper from my garden), so I kept this rather simple. The corn was better than I expected for being young and a bit small, so the time cutting it and mixing it with some ingredients that compliment it rather than dominate it, was very well spent. And my months and months of anticipation were well rewarded!

Scalloped Corn with Sour Cream and Chile

Adapted from Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys by David Tanis

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

½ cup diced onion

½ teaspoon coarse salt, divided

1 medium size garlic clove, minced

1 small chile pepper, diced

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup half and half

½ cup sour cream

3 cups corn kernels, preferably fresh, frozen will work

2 egg yolks, beaten

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Place the butter in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet. Heat over medium heat until the butter is melted. Brush some of the melted butter up the sides of the skillet as it melts.

2. Add the onion and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until softened. Stir in the garlic and chile and cook for about 1 minute more.

3. Sprinkle the flour over the onion mixture and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. Add the half and half and cook at a very gentle boil until the mixture thickens. Stir in the corn and remaining salt and cook about 2 minutes more, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and stir in the egg yolks and sour cream.

4. Place the skillet in the preheated oven and bake at 375 F for about 30 minutes, or until the mixture is set and the top is beginning to brown.

Makes 4-6 side-dish servings.


Other recipes like this one: Corn and Green Onion Tart with Bacon, Corn and Tomato Pie