One of my favorite summer guilty pleasures is without a doubt the carnival.  I’m not much of one for rides or those impossible games.  Let’s get right to the point, in Sarah Jane’s world, the carnival is a free pass to eat fried goodies.  Elephant ears, corn dogs, funnel cakes- all things off limit the other 364 days a year, but on fair day, oh, it is on.

I must confess, I do occasionally cheat on my rules, especially if I can find a way to make those types of treats at home, in a healthier fashion than the deep fried, artery clogging, death on a stick way.  That’s why I jumped to make these corn fritters with the first corn of the season.  They are the perfect mix of a little bit guilty pleasure, without having you feel guilty for a week.

If you’ve never had a corn fritter, you’re in a for a treat!  Part savory, part sweet, all crispy and delicious, they make a great snack, side dish, or serving base for a stack of veggie goodness for dinner.  Try them with green onions and sour cream, and you’ll be straight in corn fritter fabulous!

This recipe adapted from Cooking Light will have you loving your fritters every bite, but not have you feeling guilty tomorrow.  Enjoy!

Corn Fritters

Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1  teaspoon  baking powder
1/3  cup  fat-free milk
1  egg, beaten
1 1/2  cups  fresh corn kernels (3 ears)
1/3  cup  finely chopped green onions
1/4  teaspoon  salt

Combine flour and baking powder in a medium bowl. Add milk and egg; stir until smooth. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper, corn, green onions, and salt.

Heat 1/2 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.

Drop batter by level tablespoonfuls into pan to make 6 fritters; cook 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges are golden.

Carefully turn fritters over; cook 2 minutes or until golden.

Repeat procedure with remaining 1/2 teaspoon oil and remaining batter.

Looking for more fun uses for corn?  Want to test out that awesome corn tool from yesterday?  Be sure to swing by the Cupboard Saturday from 1 to 4pm.  I’m going to be whipping up some awesome salsa, letting you try your hand shucking corn, and available to answer any veggie questions you have!  Kathy is also going to be in the kitchen canning up some goodies from the garden, so you won’t want to miss it!

August is easily one of the busiest times of year for me, and I by know stretch of imagination think I’m alone in that boat.  School is starting up again. Our bevvy of August festivals and events around town are taking place. Combine all this with the fact that it seems as though every person I know either has a birthday, anniversary, or new baby this August, I feels as though I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off.  So it’s no surprise I’m searching to save every extra morsel of time I can, particularly to enjoy and preserve all the amazing food coming in this harvest season.

With all of my running around, a lot of my meals have been looking like this.  A little of this, a little of that, add olive oil, shallots, garlic, toss in skillet for 10…. well,  I’m not complaining.

Yet, in the midst of my hectic schedule this week brought the arrival of one of the delicacies of local, fresh fare- the first of the sweet corn.  I love corn, in soups, in salads, or just eaten straight with a spoon.

However, I must confess, I really, really despise shucking corn.  Between stabbing myself repeatedly (on accident) and chasing down all the kernels gone rogue, I have to confess that I have not always been the best at preserving my corn.

That is all changing thanks to this handy tool.

Sure it may look like a computer mouse (which I don’t recommend attempting to shuck corn with), but don’t underestimate this thing.  This little gadget is a toothed tool you run lengthwise on ears of corn, separating kernel from cob, and storing those juicy little morsels in it’s caboose, which you can empty after each ear.

The Corn Slitter from OXO is well worth it’s $14.95 price tag, even if you are an amateur corn shucker.  I blasted through 5 ears of corn in just under 5 minutes (ok, I had removed the husk and silk first, but that’s still super fast), had no tears, no near self-stabbings, no chasing down renegade kernels; in fact I dare to say it was the most blissful corn shucking experience I’ve ever had.

Now, I used all those delicious corny morsels to make corn fritters (check back tomorrow for the recipe for those little pieces of heaven), but you can easily store corn by freezing.

You’ll want to blanch the corn quickly first, and then store in a freezer bag for up to a year.  Not going to get a chance to grab a corn slitter before you need to freeze?  You don’t have to remove the kernels from the cob to freeze, you can simply remove the husk, silk, wash and blanch and freeze the entire cob. Corn can also be canned, though it does require a pressure canner.

Do you have a favorite corn routine?  Have you experienced this awesome tool?  Tell me about it!   If you want to try out this corn slitter, make plans to swing by the Cupboard on Saturday from 1 to 4, I’m going to be allowing test drives of mine, and also whipping up some corn treats for you to try.

You can now find us at http://www.thecupboard.net/blog!

If I have a favorite time of year  for eating, it may be right now (granted right now will probably last until November).  The late summer vegetables are starting to appear, I’m plucking cherry tomatoes straight off the vine on my patio, and each week’s CSA share continues to have more variety, color, and flavor.

This time of year, my eating style is pretty simple.  Whatever is fresh gets tossed in a pan with a little olive oil, a little garlic, and topped with some Parmesan seems to be what’s on the menu every night.

This week’s share included:

Garlic
Golden beets
Carrots
Cucumber
Kale
Onion
Yellow Squash
8 Ball Zuchini
Basil
Chives
Mint
Italian Parsley

I ate almost everything from this week’s share raw or in a simple pasta, with the exception of a few herbs….and those beets.

As I confessed earlier in the blog, I’m not a natural beet eater.  In talking to folks at the Cupboard and around town, it seems the beet is pretty intimidating to a lot of folks.  Many of us grew up without beets, or only eating beets in the pickled variety, and not liking them very much.

I’ve tried quite a few recipes in my efforts to integrate beets back into my diet, and stumbling on beet chips has been a game changer for me.  Beet chips are the perfect mix of salty and sweet.  Eating beet chips will satiate a potato chip craving, while delivering fiber, vitamins, and nutrients.  They are baked, not fried, so you needn’t feel guilty about consuming fats either. Beet chips are great as a snack or in place of traditional chips with a sandwich.  When entertaining try serving beet chips with a dollop of dip, hummus, cheese, or spread. The color creates a great plate, and a great discussion piece for friends and family who are not familiar with eating local.  Beet chips rarely last more than a day or 2 around my place, but can be stored up to a week in an airtight container. They are easy to make, but can be a little time consuming, though well worth it).

There are a few different methods to make beet chips, though I like the following recipe best.  Boiling the beets in the sugar gives them a slight sweetness, which combined with a little sea salt makes a great sweet/salty balance.

Never heard of a mandolin slicer?  Neither had I.  Now I’ve grown to love mine.  Mandolin slicers are a great tool to have on hand in the kitchen to make uniform cuts of vegetables, potatoes, and more.  Once you master making beet chips, you’ll see how easily you can adapt to make turnip chips, sweet potato chips, and more.  Just be careful when you are new to using a mandolin slicer to watch your fingers (and knuckles), and use particular care if kids are going to be in the kitchen.   If you are new to mandolin slicers, be sure to stop in and ask for a demo.

Beet Chips
Adapted from Epicurious.com

2 medium beets with stems trimmed
1 cup water
1 cup sugar

Peel beets with a vegetable peeler, then slice paper-thin with slicer, using stems as handles.

Bring water and sugar to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved.

Add beets, then remove pan from heat and let stand15 minutes. Drain beets in a colander, discarding liquid, then let stand in colander 15 minutes more.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 225°F.

Line a shallow baking pan with nonstick liner, then arrange beet slices snugly in 1 layer (it’s not necessary to use any partial or broken slices) and season with salt and pepper. Bake beets until dry, about 1 hour. Immediately transfer chips to a rack to cool (chips will crisp as they cool).

If you would like to try making beet chips without the sugar bath, simply slice beets using the mandolin slicer, then bake at 350 for 20 minutes (or until crispy) on a nonstick surface, flipping once during the bake.  They will be less sweet, but still a tasty, fun chip!
We love hearing from you, please leave a comment below.  Let us know what you’re doing with your beets, or if you have any questions we can answer for you!