Freezing Corn

 Last Weekend, my mom, her brother and my aunt froze 5 dozen corn.  Their cousins also posted on FB their photos of freezing corn.  Freezing Iowa corn was something my grandpa always did too, so seeing their photos made me miss him just a bit.  Today while shopping, the ears of corn were on sale and I decided to try my hand at freezing corn as well.  It's not Iowa corn, but it's still good and fresh, so why not.  I didn't have a daughter or granddaughter by my side, so I'm posting here in case one of them ever wants to try their hand at it and I'm too daft to share my experiences.

I bought 20 ears of corn and ended up with 3 quarts of frozen corn (3 cups of corn per quart bag).

Step 1:  Shuck (peel) the corn.  Pull the husks and silk off, then use water to help get the remaining silk off.

Step 2:  Boil water in a big pot.  Once it is boiling, put the ears of corn into the water and set a 6 minute timer (don't wait for the water to return to a boil to set the timer, just set it).  When it hits approximately 1 minute, put ice into a big bowl of water in preparation.

Step 3:  Using long tongs, take the corn out of the boiling water and submerge into ice water to cool immediately.

Step 4:  Using a sharp big knife (chef or chopper), hold the corn vertically and cut off the kernels, being careful not to get too much of the cob.  I put the cut corn into a big bowl after I cut it.

Step 5:  Place 3 cups of corn into a quart freezer bag and seal.  

Step 6:  Freeze.  Whenever I freeze soup or other items in a bag, I use a small cookie sheet that fits nicely into my freezer to lay the bagged items flat while they freeze.  Once frozen I remove the cookie sheet and the frozen bags stack nicely and defrost easily.  

Once you are ready to use the frozen corn, just add salt and pepper and butter with a little water and heat through.  You can also use it in recipes just like any frozen corn you'd buy at the store.  

 Sundried Tomato Chicken Cutlets

(Chicken Cutlets with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce by Eating Well)

I made this recipe last night and it was so yummy.  We made roasted potatoes and sliced a beefstead tomato to go with it.  

Ingedients

1 pound chicken cutlets (I took a regular boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut it in half to make two think chicken cutlets)

1/4 tsp. salt 

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup silvered oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, plus 1 T. oil from the jar

1/2 cup finely chopped shallots  (I didn't remember to buy so I used diced onion and a pinch of diced garlic)

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 T. chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Directions

1.  Sprinkle chicken with 1/8 tsp. each salt and pepper.  Heat sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until browned and an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 165 degrees, about 6 minutes total.  Transfer to a plate.

2.  Add sun-dried tomatoes and shallots to the pan.  Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.  increase heat to high and add wine.  Cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 2 minutes.  Reduce heat to medium and stir in cream, any accumulated juices from the chicken and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper; simmer for 2 minutes.  Return the chicken to the pan and turn to coat with the sauce.  Serve the chicken topped with the sauce and parsley.

Nutritional Facts:  Serving size:  3 oz. chicken and 1/4 cup sauce.  Per Serving:  324 calories; protein 25 g, carbohydrates 8.4 g; dietary fiber 1 g; sugars 1.8 g, fat 18.9 g; folate 17.3 mcg; calcium 50.7 mg, iron 1.6 mg; magnesium 42.9 mg; potassium 532.4 mg; sodium 249.5 mg.  Exchanges:  3 Fat, Lean Protein, 2 Vegetable.

 Black Bean Soup

This is a favorite recipe of mine from Mealime.  It's often paired with another recipe, so when I just want the soup, it's complicated to weed out the other ingredients and instructions.  I decided it would be easier to put it here.

This recipe is portioned for two people

Indgredients:

bell pepper

1/2 of a yellow onion

1/2 T. olive oil

1 clove of garlic

11/2 tsp. cumin

pinch- 1/4 tsp. of crushed red pepper

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1 can black beans

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

crumbled feta cheese (optional)

Directions:

1.  Quarter the bell pepper lengthwise; remove and discard the stem, seeds, and membranes.  Small dice the pepper and transfer to a medium bowl.

2.  Preheat a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat.

3.  Trim off and discard the ends of the onion and remove the outer layer; small dice the onion and add it to the bell pepper.

4.  Once the saucepan is hot, add olive oil and swirl to coat the bottom.

5.  Add the bell pepper and onion to the saucepan; cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 3-4 minutes.

6.  Peel and mince or press the garlic.

7.  Add the garlic, cumin and crushed red pepper to the saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 15 - 30 secs.

8.  Add the broth and beans (with their liquid) to the saucepan; season with salt and pepper.  Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.

9.  Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until the desired consistency is reached.  Alternatively, mash the beans with a potato masher.

10.  To serve, divide teh soup between bowls and garnish with feta.

Sloppy Joes

 Ingredients

1 pound ground meat

1 onion, chopped

1 cup ketchup

1/4 cup water

2 T. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

hamburger buns

Directions

Brown ground beef with onions over medium-high heat.  Drain.  Stir in ketchup, water and Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.  Serve on buns.