Tag: corn

Our week that was: Conker detergent, sweetcorn fritters and a riverside walk

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There I was last week, waving goodbye to summer, when a couple of dry, sunny 20ºC+ made an unseasonal appearance! I dug out the shorts and t-shirts and washed & hung a few loads of laundry out to dry in the garden. We even ate our dinner al fresco… it’s almost mid-October!

Natural detergent

For the past couple of autumns, I’ve been collecting fallen conkers from a couple of trees in the village. Horse chestnuts contain saponin, a natural soap. It makes a good, free laundry detergent – although it’s not effective on heavily soiled or stained items.

Remove the shells and roughly chop the nuts. Dry the nuts in a very low oven or dehydrator; I spread them out on a pizza mesh to ensure quick and even drying. Store in an airtight jar or other lidded container. I try to dry and store enough to last me the entire year. To use, measure out around 75 grams of nuts into a measuring jug. Pour about 300ml of boiling water over them and leave to soak for about half an hour. I like to add a few drops of essential oil to the mixture once it has cooled and been put through a sieve. Lavender is a favourite for bed linen – great for restful sleep! Rose is a preferred scent for use on clothing.

Fresh conkers in a colander Fresh conkers in a colander and hand
Conkers dried in the oven Dried conkers in a jar

Sweetcorn rescue

Back in the spring, we planted about half a dozen sweetcorn seedlings on our veg plot. We planted them alongside runner beans and squash in a three sisters formation. They got off to a good start, but then their growth seemed to grind to a halt. By the end of the season, we were left with about half a dozen malformed, misshaped and stunted cobs. I refused to simply throw the vegetable equivalents of ugly ducklings on the compost heap; instead, I used them to make fritters inspired by a recipe by Nigel Slater.

Malformed sweetcorn cob Home made sweetcorn fritter

Coed Maen Arthur

This local woodland walk is where we found an abundance of chanterelle mushrooms a couple of years ago. We were less successful last year, and this year found none at all. In fact, spotting any kind of mushroom this week was a rarity! It’s such a beautiful route, especially in autumn, that it wasn’t the end of the world. We enjoyed a wonderful family walk along the Ystwyth.

Wild mushroom Wild mushroom Top of a wild mushroom

Salted toffee popcorn

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salted toffee popcorn | H is for Home

Popcorn is a ‘superfood’. It’s low in calories, fat, sugar and salt and high in fibre, protein, magnesium, iron, B1, B2, B6… You could almost live on popcorn alone!

If a healthy option is what you’re after, you’ve come to the wrong place. We’ve taken this healthy & delicious snack and morphed it into a devilish delight – salted toffee popcorn. It doesn’t take long to transform – a mere 10 minutes – it knocks the socks off (and costs a tiny fraction of) the stuff you can buy at the cinema.

So, next time you’re sitting down to an episode of Gogglebox, Homeland or Downton Abbey – quickly pop yourself up some of this, it’s the perfect accompaniment!

We purloined the recipe from Katy Salter over at lovefood.

Salted toffee popcorn

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Course Snack

Ingredients
  

For the corn

  • 100 g/3½oz popping corn
  • 1 tbsp vegetable/sunflower oil
  • 1 tsp butter
  • pinch sea salt flakes

For the toffee coating

  • 40 g/1½oz soft brown sugar
  • 4 tbsp golden syrup
  • 30 g/1oz unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp water
  • 1 tsp sea salt flakes

Instructions
 

  • Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan over a medium heat
  • Add the butter and melt, swirling it into the oil with a wooden spoon
  • Pour in the corn and add a pinch of salt. Put the lid on the pan. The corn will start popping after about 1 minute and carry on for another 2-3 minutes
  • When the popping sounds slow down to more than 4 or 5 seconds between pops, remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly in the pan
  • In the meantime, add the butter, syrup, sugar and water to a saucepan over a medium-high heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the butter has melted and sugar dissolved
  • Bring to the boil and let it bubble rapidly for 4-5 minutes, stirring throughout, until the mixture is a dark, toffee colour
  • Pour the toffee sauce over the popcorn, and stir to coat all the kernels
  • Sprinkle the salt over, again stirring to coat all the kernels
  • Leave to cool slightly and let the toffee sauce harden for around 5 minutes before serving
Keyword popcorn, toffee

Cakes & Bakes: Skillet cornbread

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sliced skillet cornbread

When I was researching skillet cornbread recipes online, I learned that there are some strong beliefs about what is and isn’t ‘proper’ skillet cornbread. There are lots of heated debates going on on some food blogs!

Some people are purists, saying that it’s made with just cornmeal, buttermilk and egg in a smoking skillet with bacon grease; no wheat flour and no ‘extras’! Others see nothing wrong with adding sugar, corn kernels, jalapeños, avocado, bacon, cheese, honey…

Maybe it’s because I’m not an American from the Deep South, I’m not averse to adding a few extras. I also like slicing it horizontally while it’s still warm and slathering it with butter. Is that wrong or do they do that in Louisiana too?

Skillet cornbread

Skillet cornbread

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Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American

Ingredients
  

  • 1 fresh jalapeño chilli
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 225 g/8oz fine cornmeal polenta
  • 50 g/2oz plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 corn cob
  • 1 egg
  • 250 g/9oz buttermilk

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 180ºC
  • Finely slice the chilli - do not remove the seeds
  • In the skillet, using 1 tbs of the vegetable oil, fry the chopped chilli over a low heat until softened. Remove from the skillet and set aside
  • Sift together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large mixing bowl
  • Slice the kernels from the cob and add to the dry mixture
  • Add the cooked chilli
  • Gently whisk the egg with the buttermilk before adding it to the mixture
  • Stir the mixture until well combined
  • Heat the skillet with the remaining 1tbs vegetable oil on the stove-top over a high heat
  • Add the mixture, using a spatula to spread it evenly in the skillet
  • Put the skillet into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the top begins to lightly brown
  • Allow to cool slightly before slicing & serving
Keyword bread, cornbread, sweetcorn