Blueberry Corn Pancakes

I’ve been trying to use the corn we grew in the garden, but I’ve had a slight setback in that, what with one thing and another, we forgot to harvest it at its peak and it’s a little drier and tougher than it should be. Since those aren’t the best qualities for eating corn on the cob, I’ve been exploring other recipes, such as this one for Blueberry Corn Pancakes.

Scrumptious!

I combined two recipes I found on Tastespotting – one for pancakes with fresh corn and one for pancakes with fresh blueberries and cornmeal. I figured that the blueberries would add a little more moisture to the pancakes and help balance out the dryness of the corn. I also halved the recipe because there aren’t enough mouths for a full batch!

On the griddle, blueberry side down

They turned out absolutely delightful – a great taste and a great texture. One thing I wasn’t expecting is that they don’t stay together quite the same way as regular pancakes because of the corn, but they were pretty perfect regardless.

Blueberry Corn Pancakes
Adapted from The Bitten Word and Foodo Del Mundo

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 ears of fresh corn
• 1/2 scant cup whole milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• fresh blueberries (about 30, 5-6 for each pancake)

Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, and 1/2 tsp salt in a medium bowl.

Cut enough kernels from cobs to measure 1 cup. Using back of a knife, scrape pulp from cobs and transfer to a blender with milk and 1/4 cup corn. Getting the pulp off is difficult, but do the best you can. Purée until smooth, then strain through a sieve into another medium bowl, pressing on and then discarding solids. Whisk in egg, oil, and butter.

Add to flour mixture with remaining 3/4 cups corn and whisk until just combined. Batter will be thick!

Heat a griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat until hot, then spray with oil. Working in batches, pour 1/3 cup batter per pancake onto griddle and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden-brown, about 2 minutes. Just before flipping push 5-6 blueberries into the top of each pancake. Flip with a spatula and cook until undersides are golden-brown, about 1 minute more. (Reduce heat if pancakes brown too quickly.) Lightly oil griddle between batches if necessary.

Makes 6 pancakes.

Grilling Feast

So, I bought a box of red beans and rice a few weeks ago thinking that it would be tasty some time. And then I brought it home, and it just kept sitting on the shelf, because I couldn’t figure out what to eat with it!

Finally, I had the idea of grilling Creole Spiced Tofu and serving it with the red beans and rice. A pineapple on the counter slowly going to waste was a later addition to the grill that added a delicious juiciness to the meal that it would have suffered from a lack of. Coupled with a couple of cocktails from the latest Real Simple, it was a perfect meal.

A delicious summer meal

Creole Tofu

• 1 lb. extra firm tofu
• 2 tablespoons Creole Seasoning Rub (see below)

Cut 1lb. block of tofu into 1/2 in. slabs (about 5). Mix two tablespoons of seasoning rub with about 1/2 cup of olive oil in a medium sized casserole dish and place the tofu in the dish in a single layer. Use a brush and flip the tofu around so the marinade is on all sides of the tofu. Refrigerate while the grill is getting ready.

Clean and preheat the grill to a medium-low heat. Cover and grill the tofu for about 30 minutes, flipping and rebrushing it with the seasoned oil from the casserole dish every 5 to 10 minutes. (To flip the tofu without it disintegrating, I put a large spatula right next to the tofu, used tongs to flip the tofu up and onto the spatula, and then slid the tofu off the spatula. A little more effort, but the tofu broke when I tried to just slide the spatula underneath.)

Use extra seasoned oil on pineapple slices for a tasty, grilled side dish.

Creole Seasoning Rub

• 3 teaspoons salt
• 3/4 teaspoons sweet paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Combine all ingredients. Makes about 2 tablespoons.

Garden bounty!

One of my favorite things about summer is fresh, delicious, sun-warmed lemon cucumbers picked from the garden and eaten immediately. They’re just so delicious and so pretty. How come more people don’t love these? It’s so hard to find these anywhere except for my garden!

A freshly picked lemon cucumber

Just wash them to get off the little prickly points (they must be related to pickling cucumbers!), slice them, and eat them straight or with a little bit of salt. Yum!