Corn Bake and Cottages

So I'm still working on this regular posting idea. We'll get there.

In other news, we had a fabulous time at the cottage this past weekend. The weather couldn't have held out better for us and the food was plentiful. $240 for five people's worth to be slightly more exact. And don't think we wasted any of it. All that's left that didn't come home with us is a box of fudgecicles that we left as a gift to the next occupants. They certainly weren't going to make the car trip back home, so in the freezer they stayed.


The above is about all the digital photos I took over the weekend. I brought my film camera and used that for most of the trip. Once all the rolls are developed, I may scan some of the pictures and put them up here, depending on how they turn out.

Once I got back I had a quick look at the finances and re-discovered that I'm still broke. Time to get creative with the menu again. I happened to have had two cans of corn in the pantry for a long time (do they expire? It doesn't say anywhere on the can...), and found this fabulous recipe for a cheesy corn bake on The Kitchn website! Works for me. I used half of the red pepper since I discovered part of the one I had was a bit funky on the inside. I then substituted the rest of it with some chopped mushrooms I had lying around, throwing them in with the peppers.


Cheesy Corn Bake

Serves 4 - 6

1 red bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk 

1 cup freshly grated cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons cream cheese
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper
4 cups corn, fresh or frozen*

1-2 green onions (I sprinkled them on before serving as a garnish and a hint of the crisp, as the cooking reality shows are saying these days)

Preheat oven to 375°.

Sauté bell pepper in a little bit of olive oil over medium to medium high heat. Set aside. 

In a heavy sauce pan, melt butter on medium-low to medium heat. Add flour and whisk until smooth (and the flour taste is cooked out), about three minutes. Pour in the milk and cook, constantly stirring, until very thick. Mix in cheddar and cream cheese and stir until melted and creamy. Remove from the heat and season with salt and cayenne. 

Combine the cheese sauce, red pepper, and corn in a large bowl. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if desired. Pour into a baking dish, cover and bake until hot and bubbly, about 35 minutes. You can remove the cover for the last 10-15 minutes to bubble it a bit more.

*If using frozen corn, steam and drain it before adding it to the recipe.

 Oh yes. So much cheese. So good.