Over at Roots and Grubs, Matthew made some creamed corn (maize) to pair with sausages and grapes. Sounds like a sumptuous meal even if the adorable Iris didn't seem that impressed.

Matthew's method of creaming corn reminds me to put an order into my experimental notes. I'm working on a very old recipe that calls for creamed corn. Well, it's more like a custard with corn kernels that are partially mashed. The modern way of doing it is just to buy canned cream-style corn but for the sake of recreating the original recipe, I wanted to make it from scratch.

Anyway, here are my notes for creaming corn:

• Cream-style (without dairy). Grate the ears of corn on a box grater. With a firm hand, run the blade of the knife over the ears to get out the milk and the germ. An alternative method is to slice the kernels thinly with a knife. The corn is then simmered in water and a pinch of salt or sugar over low fire.


• Creamed corn.This is the real thing. Same method as above but instead of simmering in water, use cream or half and half. Reduce the mixture to half or according to desired thickness.

As simple as that. Well, of course opening a can is much easier but once to have a taste of your own creamed corn, there's no comparing. And of course, you don't get to eat all those preservatives.