Rob just came in with the smallest little corn cobette I've ever seen in my life. No, it's not one of those mini-ears that Tom Hanks ate like he was playing the harmonica in "Big." No, this was a teeny tiny version of the regular ears Rob grew in our garden this year.
Last year, we grew corn but didn't get to harvest it in time. First a big wind storm came and knocked down all the stalks. Then mean black crows (are there any other kind?) came and dined on the apparently ripe cobs. So wisely, with only gentle breezes and no crows to caw at, Rob went out this afternoon to harvest our 2007 bounty.
I believe I can now say I have experienced Corn Cob Heaven. I thought it was at our County Fair (see Fair Watch 2007 postings). No, it's actually in my back yard. I didn't know until today that you could eat an ear of corn raw; no boiling, grilling, or other heating necessary. Rob simply picked my 1.5 inch ear (2 inches if you count the handle), washed it, and handed it to me. It is now just a fuzzy, nibbled, nibblet-free husk. Sweet, sweet, sweet. Not to mention crisp, crunchy, and juicy.
Rob just told me the official variety of corn I'm now addicted to: Sugar Dots. A true marketing genius came up with that name; I couldn't have said it better. Other than, "Mmmmm!"
2 comments:
Someone once told me (a botanist or a horticulturalist no doubt) that the moment you pick corn off the stalk, the ear starts turning the sugars to starches. So, the sweetest corn on the cob is picked off the stalk and eaten.
The Mexicans at the flower stall on the corner of my block planted corn in one of those little 3x3 sidewalk tree planting spaces. I guess they were corn farmers in their homeland. But they only got about 5 ears - hardly enough to sustain themselves for the season. Still, it's cool seeing fresh corn growing in Midtown Manhattan.
-Zeke
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