How could something so sweet be good for you and yet stick to the bowl like starch?

July and August may be the dog days of summer because of the heat but they are our time to ‘put up corn.’

Sweet corn is my family’s favorite vegetable.  When the family gathers for Sunday lunch or at holidays, we serve a large container of corn. Not just any corn but fresh corn that is frozen quickly to preserve the taste.

To have enough corn to serve at these special family gatherings, we schedule several processing times. Our goal is to put at least 50 quarts in the freezer.

A local farmer provides the corn, hopefully family gathers to help Papaw shuck the husks and then into the house for me to blanch, cool, and cut off cob.

I thought I would record the process for future generations, in case they want to have that fresh tasting corn we have every Sunday for lunch.

Our son and grand kids and whoever might be around help shuck it and then John and I prepare for freezer.

 

 

Just a few more ears to go!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few tips to make sure you get that fresh taste!

 

Well, which is it sugar or starch? It is both. The grain can produce corn syrup which is placed in most of products we use.  Read the labels.  The corn plant also provides edible starch to make corn starch, jellies and candies.  The dextrin from the raw starch is used to make glue, fireworks.  Crude corn oil is used in making plastic resin, glycerin for soap and refined oil for salad oil, cooking oils and medicinal oils.  Corn is also used to produce ethanol (ethyl alcohol) for fuel.

Of course, our ancestors used corn to process by wet milling, fermenting and adding yeast to convert the sugars into alcohol, also known as “white lightning.” Sorry no video for this process!

Several years ago I was told there was no nutrition in corn.  But read today that corn has vitamins B and E as well as minerals – phosphorous, magnesium, manganese, zinc, iron and copper with traces of selenium. Also good source of fiber.

Get the fresh corn and enjoy the sugar and starch and even some nutrients.