Month: May 2023

Charro-Ish Beans

Charro-Ish Beans

I’m always looking for bean recipes.  Always.  Recently, I saw recipes for Charro Beans (Mexican Cowboy Beans) posted on the Internet. They all had bacon as an ingredient. I decided to experiment with the recipe. I ended up with three variations on the original recipe.…

Oldies But Goodies: Pimento Cheese Sandwiches

Oldies But Goodies: Pimento Cheese Sandwiches

Every month Blue Cayenne features recipes from our archive of more than four hundred recipes. These recipes are our “Oldies But Goodies.” Today’s Oldie But Goodie recipe is for the classic Pimento Cheese Sandwiches. You’ll find it here. You don’t want to miss this great recipe…again.…

Corn Custard: Budin de Elote

Corn Custard: Budin de Elote

This Corn Custard is a wonderful way to showcase fresh-off-the-cobb white corn. The fresh taste of the corn really shines through in this dish. 

I served this pudding as part of a Mexican-themed menu at a recent party and it got high praise from all of my guests. The fresh corn devotees were especially impressed. 

This recipe is from one that appears in the cookbook Doña Tomás as Budín de Elote. Doña Tomás is a Mexican restaurant in Oakland, California, renowned for its creative menu featuring regional Mexican foods. The cookbook is available on Amazon here.The cookbook authors, Thomas Schnetz and Dona Savitsky, note that their restaurant has a faithful clientele who savor the fresh white corn version of this dish when corn is ripe between June and October. When fresh corn isn’t available, they feature a version of this pudding with zucchini and shallots or poblanos and green garlic or other seasonal vegetables. 

Here is the dish as I prepared it in my kitchen. I did sprinkle a bit of cayenne pepper on the pudding to give it a bit of heat. 

 

Corn Pudding: Budin de Elote

May 24, 2023
Ingredients
  • 3 C. fresh corn kernels
  • 1 1/2 C. fresh zucchini (cut into 1/4-inch dice)
  • 1/3 C. all-purpose lour
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 3 C. heavy cream
  • 2 t. kosher salt
Directions
  • Step 1 Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.. Center oven rack in the center of the oven.
  • Step 2 Cut corn kernels off the cobb of fresh corn. Remove as much of the corn silk as possible. (I used a brush.)
  • Step 3 Cut the fresh zucchini into 1/4 inch dice. I did not peel the zucchini. The green zucchini skin was attractive in the dish. I’m thinking I may add some diced jalapeno peppers to this dish the next time I make it.
  • Step 4 Toss the corn kernels and diced zucchini in the flour.
  • Step 5 In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolks. Then, whisk the cream and salt into the eggs.
  • Step 6 Prepare a 9-inch deep casserole by buttering it generously. Arrange the diced zucchini and corn on the bottom of the casserole, smoothing the top of the diced vegetables until they are about 1 inch deep. Pour the egg custard mixture over the vegetables.
  • Step 7 Bake uncovered for about an hour. My pudding took a little longer than that. You want the top of the pudding to be firm when pressed and you want the pudding to be cooked through. When done, remove the pudding from the oven and let it sit on the counter for 10-15 minutes to allow it to further firm up. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette

Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette

Like that proverbial little black dress, it’s important to have a collection of delicious salad dressings at the ready. You never know. This Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette is a great candidate for your salad dressing repertoire. It’s mildly spicy, mildly sweet and mildly tangy. In other…

Dessert! No-Bake Lemon Custard

Dessert! No-Bake Lemon Custard

It was a party in a dessert bowl. We were celebrating the happy birthday of my neighbor and good friend Sarah, and I needed a light dessert to follow an ambitious Mexican menu.  Sarah loves everything lemon, so I prepared this Melissa Clark (New York…