Down on the Farm, Part One: Freezing Fresh Corn

Last week I was blessed to have visited my grandma, who is probably the only person who faithfully reads my blog, and grandpa in southern Ohio. They have a beautiful farm of about 40 acres with rolling hills, chickens, a garden, and plenty of flowers. When I was little and went to visit, they also kept up with cows, rabbits, and the occasional pig. (Am I forgetting anything grandma?) It's a real special place to my heart. I remember so many summer weeks spent down on the farm, and I glad that I was able to go again now that we have moved back to Ohio.

While there hasn't been much rain, grandpa has faithfully tended to his large garden, and we had fresh produce while I was there. Most notably corn, because we froze some for later. I think it was about 6 dozen ears, if I remember right, which yields close to 6 quarts. That's about 6 side dishes for meals- yum! Plus we had some fresh also. If you've never preserved corn, here's how it works:

First you have to shuck the corn- remove all the outer layers and the silk. Grandpa spent almost two hours doing this for 6 dozen ears!

Second, you get a BIG pot of water boiling. Then you add 6-7 ears of corn and boil for about 3-4 minutes, just to blanch them before packaging. When they are done boiling, you need to let them sit to cool or put them in ice water. We used a sink with cold water and reused a clean milk jug with frozen water. You can use ice cubes but this works just as well and is easy.

Third, once the corn is cool enough to work with, you cut it off of the ears. If you have a good knife or tool for cutting, it comes off in strips like in the picture below. We used the Pampered Chef Kernel Cutter, and I really liked it. I hadn't used it before- usually when I have packaged corn with my parents before we just use a knife.

Fourth and finally, fill quart or pint-sized freezer-quality bags with the corn. Mark the date in permanent marker and store in the freezer! Now it's ready to pull out of the freezer and thaw for a quick side dish during the winter, when fresh corn isn't available. Yummy!