I've been giving thought to corn lately...exciting, I know! I've been trying to figure out how to work corn into our food storage plan but the research became rather confusing. I never would have guessed there were so many varieties of corn out there...flint, dent, field, sweet, pop. Some varieties are only good fresh. Some are best for tortillas. Others are only good soaked in lye and boiled. Who woulda thunk it?
The goal was a whole grain corn product with a long shelf life that could be ground into meal for battering fish, for cornbread and hush puppies, and you'll never guess what the answer was....popcorn! I found many references online to popcorn being ground for cornmeal, so I tried it. Jeff was the muscle that day because popcorn ISN'T easy to grind, but after the grinding, I made up a batch of plain old cornbread. Honest to Goodness, that was the lightest, fluffiest, Jiffy-Mixiest cornbread I have ever made! The corn ground up finer than traditional cornmeal, but grittier than flour and the resulting bread had the corny flavor, but the texture was along the lines of a quick bread.
Plus, popcorn is a much more versatile grain than flint or dent corn. Of course you can pop it for a snack, and it's a wonderful comfort food, but did you know that the colonists used popcorn as a breakfast food. Sure! They served it with milk and sugar just like any other grain. My first reaction was 'ewwwww' but I imagine it's no different that any other grain-milk-sugar combination. And far more nutritious than any Instant Oatmeal on the market.
So, it's popcorn for us.
8 comments:
Okay, I don't know why I didn't realize there were that many different kinds of corn since I know that there are several wheat varieties. This certainly makes sense. (Actually, I knew popcorn was different, but didn't think about using it for other things). I have been grinding my own corn for years, but I just order whatever is available through my co-op. I have a bit of dried popcorn in my pantry... I might have to grind some and give this a try.
So, are you planting corn again this year or have you given up? I know you had trouble with the other farmer's corn pollinating your own.
If it's a 'soy' year, I'll still plant corn. Sweet corn is just too good straight off the stalk! And the farm market down the road wanted $5/doz last year...I'm scared to think what they'd charge this year! Yikes! If it's a 'corn' year, we may have to make the hike to Amish country and buy a truckload.
Yes Andrea and we can also send you some!! LOL
We plant corn every year. It a staple around here. Of course with our corn growing we can't grow the popcorn due to the pollination. I may try this year to cover some popcorn and TRY to grow it.
I am going to try the cornbread though sounds devine. Care to share the recipe?
Here it is, Jan. It's just the old Better Homes and Gardens version, which is sweeter than the recipe I grew up with, but it's likeable nonetheless. I bake mine in a cast iron skillet....pop it in the preheating oven with the 1/4c. oil/shortening and leave it there til it's smoking hot. When you pour the batter in the skillet, it will begin cooking right away and yield a brown, crunchy crust.
1c ap flour
1c cornmeal
2-4T sugar
1T baking powder
1/2t salt
2 beaten eggs
1c milk
1/4c shortening/oil
Preheat the oven to 425. Put the 1/4c oil/fat into the skillet and pop it in the oven to get really hot.
In a medium bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. In a smaller bowl, combine the beaten eggs and milk. Add the egg mixture to the dry mixture and stir just to moisten.
When the oven is preheated and the pan is crazy hot, carefully remove the skillet, pour the oil into the batter, mix it slightly and then pour the batter into the skillet. It should begin sizzling right away.
Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes until the center is set.
********************************
Oh, and a simple caveat for the general public: smoking hot means it will burn your hand if you aren't careful. This is the way I grew up making cornbread. If you don't like handling hot pans and hot oil, just melt the oil in the microwave and add it to the batter. Don't say I didn't warn you.
I grew my own popcorn last year, but it doesn't pop well so I'm grinding it up and making some corn meal mush with it.
So let me get this straight... pop the corn then grind it?
No Jan, don't pop it! Grind it like any other grain...then use the meal to make the corn bread.
very interesting!
Post a Comment