James River Corn Pudding

Kumquat the Cat's friend's Note:

This recipe was in today's NYTimes food section, courtesy of Elaine Louie the Temporary Vegetarian. Why temporary, I don't know. This "is a recipe that has been handed down pre-Civil War." Wow. Unlike most corn puddings, it does not contain sugar and purists do not put sugar in their corn pudding. Do make this only during corn season when fresh corn is at its sweetest. It's from "A Love Affair with Southern Cooking" by Jean Anderson. She likes to make this for dinner parties, and a perfect accompaniment is salad and biscuits served the true Southern way, with no honey.

• Total Time: 45 mins
• Prep Time: 35 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 tablespoons butter, more for buttering casserole
• 2 large eggs, beaten until frothy
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 2 cups fresh corn (4 small to medium ears)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 1 1/2 quart casserole and set aside. Place a kettle of water over high heat to bring to a boil. Place beaten eggs in a bowl and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter and whisk in four until smooth. Add milk and whisk constantly until thickened, about 5 minutes. While whisking vigorously, slowly add about 1 cup hot milk misture into eggs. Return saucepan to medium-low heat, and whisk egg mixture back into remaining milk mixture. Stir 1 minute (do not boil), then remove from heat and add corn, salt and pepper.
3. Pour corn mixture into casserole and set in a shallow baking pan. Pour boiling water into pan to come halfway up sides of casserole. Bake until set like custard, 25 to 40 minutes depending on the shape and depth of the casserole. Cool for 10 minutes, then serve.

Reviews

[the80srule]

This was a great corn pudding. I made it when requests for a second corn pudding came about yesterday for Thanksgiving; and it had a much different flavor and texture than what I was expecting. I didn't use fresh corn, just two cans of yellow/white shoepeg blend, but it was still great for the holiday! Made and tagged as a Recipenap for Veggie Swap 16.

[Sydney Mike]

Although I didn't use fresh corn this time around, I definitely look forward to making this recipe a number of times next year when corn at its best! Still, what I came up with was a very nice tasting corn dish! Thanks for sharing the recipe! [Tagged, made & reviewed as a recipenap in the Vegetarian/Vegan Recipe Swap 16]