Corn Pudding

I don't know if this has just been a particularly good summer for corn, or if I've just been missing out on the good stuff available directly from the farmers all these years. Since I've been getting corn from a CSA, it's like a whole new awakening. I've always loved corn, but usually couldn't be bothered with coming up with things to do with it. Now that I have this seemingly endless supply, I'm actually having fun coming up with ideas.

Today I made corn pudding, which is a lovely corn casserole filled with gorgeous flavors. Simple seasonings, a bit of milk, some sharp cheese, corn and onion join together with some assistance from an egg and form a beautiful side or main dish. We had ours for dinner along with a side salad, but of course this dish is traditionally seen as a side dish backing up some kind of protein. Really, though, this deserves to be the main attraction.

Make sure you have some really good, sweet corn (preferably white, but let's not be corn-racist) and you can whip this up for a pot luck, for a holiday spread, or simply for dinner.

Corn Pudding
adapted from Deborah Madison's Local Flavors
serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
3 large ears sweet corn, shucked
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup nonfat milk
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar (or cheese of your choice)
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
paprika

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray a shallow 3-cup baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Melt butter in a skillet over low heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, just until it's soft and lightly colored, about 10 minutes. (If you want a deeper onion flavor, go ahead and let it get a bit browned. I think it would be yummy.)

3. While onion is cooking, cut the kernels from the corn into a large bowl. Scrape the cob with the flat side of your knife to get out the corn "milk" as well.

4. Stir the egg, milk, cheese, parsley, marjoram, and salt and pepper to taste into the same bowl as the corn. Stir in the cooked onion. Make sure everything is relatively evenly distributed. Pour into the baking dish, and sprinkle with a few dashes of paprika on top. Bake in center of oven until puffed and golden, about 45-50 minutes. Serve warm.

Enjoy!