Corn
Zea mays var. rugosa
O
nce again the designers have had their
way, and the golden yellow corn of my
youth (and yours?) has morphed into red, blue,
black, white, and all kinds of mottled split
personalities.
They all share a common sweetness that is
profoundly more delicious on the day they are
picked. Along with the sweetness, however,
come the inevitable calories from carbohy
drates. But when served on the cob, their sheer
visual size can help limit their effect on those
with diabetes. Corn does come complete with
quite a high fiber content, and each gram of
fi ber can be deducted from the overall carbo
hydrate total.
I’ve always enjoyed the way the kernels
can be used in sauces, soups, and casseroles; as
fritters; in pancakes; and even in waffl es! Th ey
supply little sunbursts of color along with
the sweetness, but they also introduce a tex
ture that can be wonderful when set against
a smooth, mild background, as in my Corn
Chowder (page 134).
There is a pretty obvious cultural preference
for buttering corn, which can sometimes be
overdone—so much so that the treat of the sea
son can become a potential threat. I’ve sug
gested a saffron- (or turmeric-) colored sauce as
a visual alternative. It obviously doesn’t taste like
butter, but it is, in its own right, very pleasing.
I really don’t have the space for corn, and I
live almost next door to some of the fi nest corn
in the world!
Having said that, I’m still keen to see how it
works. My pals recommend Golden Midget for
a smaller garden, since it grows only 36 inches
high. The soil needs to be just above 70ºF. Corn
needs moderate water until the plant fl owers
and then heavier watering for the growing sea
son. The soil must be kept moist without fl ood
ing the plant’s shallow root system until the
tassels appear. At this point, the water needs to
go deep until the silks form. This is when the
male flower tassel releases pollen, which drops
on the female flower silk. The plant may need a
gentle shaking to help the pollination take
place.
You can test when the ear is ready by pinch
ing a corn kernel; it should be milky.
The Numbers
Quantities on the cob vary to such a degree as to defy
measurement, so the reference used here is to kernels
that can be easily measured.
For each 100 g kernels (3.5 oz ; ½ cup): 108 calories,
1 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 25 g carbohydrate, 3 g pro
tein, 3 g dietary fiber, 0 mg sodium
132 • GROWING AT THE SPEED OF LIFE
