Friday, September 3, 2010

Corn Timbale



From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...To market, to market to buy a fat pig, but I came home without one jiggity jig. That's not to say I came home empty handed. Corn, at twelve ears for a dollar, was an unprecedented bargain, even for markets in this area. I loaded my basket with 24 ears and hatched a plan to do some recipe testing that I've postponed for a long time now. I've been holding on to two very old recipes that I wanted to try, and corn, at that price, provided the incentive I needed to finally proceed. Both recipes are variants of corn pudding. One of them turned out to be very pedestrian and is not worth your time. The other is Julia Child's corn timbale and it is interesting only because the recipe is hers. I must admit a prejudice going into this. I have never understood why it's necessary to take a delicious vegetable and try to make something of it that it's not. Corn is a very basic thing. A timbale usually is not. A timbale is a molded dish that holds a custard that's used to bind a mixture of cheese and vegetables or meat together. A true mold has high sides and is closed at the bottom, much like a charlotte pan. The dish is baked in a hot water bath and allowed to sit briefly before unmolding. The corn timbale is a good looking dish, but it takes a lot of butter and cream to get it to the table and I'm not much into showmanship these days. I'll let you read the recipe and decide if you want to proceed with it on your own. I found it to be pleasant, but strangely bland for one of Julia's recipes. If you don't have a corn creamer, you can use the large holes of a box grater to scrape the ears and make corn milk. Here's Julia's recipe. Bon Appetit! Kinda! Sorta! Maybe!

Corn Timbale
...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Julia Child

Ingredients:

3 cups corn milk (scraped from the cob with a corn creamer)
6 large eggs
3 tablespoons minced onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
2/3 cup grated swiss cheese
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

Directions:

Butter an 9-cup charlotte mold or high-sided baking dish and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Whisk together corn, eggs, onion, salt, parsley, breadcrumbs, cheese, cream, red pepper, and black pepper. Pour into prepared charlotte mold. Set mold in a larger dish and pour boiling water around it to come two-thirds of the way up its sides. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then turn down the oven to 325 and bake for 45 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes, then unmold onto a serving plate. Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Spoon Bread with Leeks and Gruyere Cheese - One Perfect Bite
Summer Corn Pudding - Stacey Snacks
Southwestern Corn Pudding - Janet is Hungry
Baked Corn Casserole - Never Enough Thyme
Corn Spoon Bread - Deep South Dish
Classic Corn Pudding with Cheddar and Chives - The Runaway Spoon
Corn Pudding - Closet Cooking

55 comments :

Angie's Recipes said...

That's a real bargain! With 1 dollar, you could just get 2 corns here...:-((
The timbale made with fresh corns sounds really wonderful.

Cooking Gallery said...

I can imagine to have this for breakfast :).

Alessandra said...

Oh Mary!!!! I really have to make this!!! Maybe many miniature timbales... it would be so great!!!

Thank you for sharing!

ciao
Alessandra

Rachana said...

A very new dish to me. Looks great!

My Little Space said...

Great that you finally found some cheap corn for this recipe. I guess no one will ever go to the market and came home with empty handed. haha.... The recipe looks great and it's worth to try it though. Have a great day.
Blessings, Kristy

Katerina said...

That's what blogging is all about after all. Testing and judging. It is always good to hear people who tested a recipe what they think about it. Thanks for daring to say your opinion about a recipe whichever that may be.

Nina Timm said...

Do you know how long I have been searchin gfor a proper corn timbale, where corn is the prodominant taste. Perfecto!!

Rita said...

Looks beautiful Mary! an I do love to try JC's recipes, but the amount of eggs and cream would scare me away; brave of you to try this...syill it is lovely.
Rita
What a great buy!

Red Nomad OZ said...

People often express surprise when I divulge that corn is my favourite vegetable! I'm not much into fuss and bother either, but always willing to try a new way with my fave! Have a great weekend!

Allie and Pattie said...

I love your reviews Mary- they're usually spot on. Interestingly, I also posted a timbale last night- but the more traditional southern Italian kind. No custard :) I have to go easier on spices as my mother dislikes ANY heat, but can easily be ramped up. 12 for a dollar??!! Oh, my! Amazing!
xoxo Pattie

Simply Life said...

oh i love this!

From the Kitchen said...

It's difficult for me to do anything with fresh corn other than to eat it from the cob. The timbale would make a nice presentation.

Have a great weekend.

Best,
Bonnie

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

Looks utterly yummy...makes me hungry..!

Sushma Mallya said...

sound simple and looks beautiful

Patti said...

I think this sounds delicious. Corn pudding is a traditional Thanksgiving dish at our house. Maybe the family would be willing to try their corn this way instead. Then again, maybe not, as there is SUCH comfort in those constant traditions. Maybe I'll just make the timbales for no special reason.

Thanks for sharing,
Patti

Cathy said...

I'm sure this is delicious, but, like you, I usually opt to enjoy our fresh, wonderful produce prepared in ways that don't cover its flavors. There are so many ways to serve corn but grilled, buttered and salted is my favorite.

Victoria said...

I love to cook corn at the end of summer and I'm always happy to find a new recipe! The taste of the corn with the swiss cheese must be delicious ... Have nice weekend!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I am just chomping at the bit to get to the farmers market tomorrow morning and pick up some corn on the cob!!

Unknown said...

I've never really been a fan of corn in any form other then it's natural one...but I'm always willing to try something new! It sounds interesting if nothing else. I've always been a bit intimidated by Julia's recipes, but I sure love to watch reruns of her show!!

Priya Suresh said...

Delicious and interesting dish, thanks for sharing..

Susi's Kochen und Backen said...

I love anything with corn and for that price I would have stocked up too! I don't think I've ever had a corn timbale but it looks and sounds like something I would immensely enjoy :o) Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Barbara said...

Funny thing about corn puddings, Mary. My dad loved them so I made one nearly every holiday for him. I always found them bland too...but he didn't. (but then one of his favorite corn dishes was canned corn, browned in butter with cream poured over it!! And he lived to 94too.)

Raks said...

sounds good,new to me,nice post :)

GLENDA CHILDERS said...

I am learning so many new cooking terms from your blog, Mary. Timbale is one I have never heard. I think on this one, I might stick to throwing the corn on the grill. :-)

Fondly,
Glenda

Pondside said...

Timbales are so pretty on the plate, but I think that any dinner guest that saw a fresh corn timbale would be a little disappointed at missing the opportunity to just eat it off the cob, dripping with butter!

Stacey Snacks said...

This looks fabulous.
I love timbales, they make dinner look special! I will be trying this one with our jersey corn!

StephenC said...

Not having a creamer, I wonder if doing a puree in the food processor would do the trick?

Chef Dennis Littley said...

your timbale looks like it was perfect! what a great use of all this wonderful fresh corn we have! It certainly was a bargain! I have been adding roasted corn to so many things we eat, I just love it!
thanks for sharing this great recipe with us!

La Bella Cooks said...

Wow, we have corn fields for miles around where I live but our prices are not anywhere near that cheap for corn. This timbale would be fabulous!

Biren said...

Wow...the corn was a real bargain. I paid $4 for 13 corn last weekend at a farmer's stand. It was good corn. The timbale sounds interesting. I think it is worth a try :)

January Asia said...

Yummy corn recipe.

In my latest post, I mentioned you, your blog, and one of your recipes. See for yourself:
http://caffeinatedglobe.blogspot.com/2010/09/brunch-party-ideas-7-recipes-that-will.html

Unknown said...

Wow you got a grt burgain....The Timbale looks grt and delicious....
Just want to know about Corn Milk...where to get it or how to make it,though you have mention the corn creamer, its new to me...hopeyou won't mind asking...

Joanne said...

Thanks for sharing even though you weren't enamored!

I love how cheap corn is these days...and so tasty too!

Ginny Hartzler said...

I must say this is rather strange looking! I've never heard of a timbale made from corn. Interesting.

Create. Snap. Eat. said...

Love it! And amazing presentation.

JG said...

What a great price for corn! Certainly the time to try something new. Your Timbale looks good.

Have a good weekend. ~Judy

Adelina said...

the beginning of your post made me laugh- but one cannot overlook such a bargain! and you have an interesting recipe here. I ran into timbale molds while shopping at amazon.com for some baking pans- it does seem like one needs the real mold for this creation. As for blandness, my husband would fix it in a jiffy with one of the Indian pickles we have in the fridge :)

Unknown said...

Quite the steal, this looks amazing and the color is superb

aipi said...

Hi Mary,
First time here..I always wanted to learn how to make corn timbale..but never found a good enough recipe..I will give this one a try..Thanks a lot for sharing:)

Will be here often..
Do drop by my space sometime.
Aipi
US Masala

Momo said...

great recipe,looks wonderful!

Momo said...

mary ,thanks for stop on my blog!i have an old camera,fuji,fine pix,s1500...

Jill said...

Hi!

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog today and leaving me a sweet comment! I greatly appreciate it! I hope you have a wonderful day! I enjoy your blog as well and will be back to visit!
Blessings,
Jill

Jennifer said...

My husband would die over this! He is a corn lover from way back!

Andrea@WellnessNotes said...

Great deal on the corn. And what an interesting recipe to experiment with! The dish looks beautiful!

susan said...

Mary-Wow! That is some bargain! I agree with you-- I don't think corn needs anything but salt and butter. Even when I cut mine off the cob, that's about all I do. I used to cut off about 100-150 ears every summer to freeze---what a major and messy job! Hope you are doing well!

We Are Not Martha said...

This looks SO SO good. Corn and pudding: What could be better?!

Sues

Monet said...

So this looks so very impressive! But I am with you...when you have a veggie like corn, I just like to eat those ears plain. But I may have to pull this out for a special occasion. Thanks for sharing!

scrambledhenfruit said...

I'm a sweet corn fan- this looks like a fun way to prepare it!

Bakericious said...

a new dish to me but must be yummy :).

Lucie said...

Thank you for sharing your review of this, Mary. It's a really interesting recipe I'd like to try!

Claudia said...

This is certainly amust-do while the corn is at peak. And so pretty. Tasting it already. Have a grand weekend.

Carla and Michael said...

This looks interesting enough to give it a try.
Thanks and have a great Labor Day week-end.

Houdini said...

I could not agree more with your showmanship statement, although sometimes I also succumb to the temptation and do it. I have the time.

Jen_from_NJ said...

Wow -12 ears for a dollar! 50 cents an ear is the price at our local farm stand. I agree at that price it was the perfect opportunity to experiment with recipes.

Becky said...

Mary, I remember making this years ago at my grandmother's house, as my grandfather grew scads of corn. But I don't remember how it tasted at all.

Interestingly, I just now watched Julia make this on The French Chef on The Cooking Channel. Then I googled it and saw I had missed your blog post! We've got corn coming in the veggie box and I think I will give this another try.

Julia served the timbale surrounded by quartered buttered Brussels sprouts. Also, she used "about six squirts" of Tabasco, rather than the cayenne in the printed recipes. And she used a combo of white cheddar and Swiss cheeses. I think when I made it at my grandmother's, we probably only used yellow cheddar.

What fun to get to see you have made this and read your review. Thanks!

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