Corn in the USA

Labor Day recipes to keep you cool while the world burns

Howdy y’all. Since the sun has decided to go homicidal for the Labor Day weekend, we’re gonna keep this newsletter brief. 

Let’s talk sides for a minute. Sure, everyone wants to spend the last summer holiday standing around the grill watching burgers and hotdogs get flipped. But point us in the direction of the side dish table, that’s where the real food is at. Potato salad, corn, cole slaw, pasta salad, the works. Nobody is ever like “Ya know Jerry grills the best hot dogs” fuck that it’s all about sides. 

So this weekend try our Grilled Veggie Couscous Salad. A solid side staple at any BBQ and let’s be honest, we could use the fiber. Our Basmati Stuffed Grilled Peppers are such a hit that they’re *almost* an entree. Still want a burger but avoiding meat? No fucking problem, our BBQ Bean Sliders got your back and you can even skip the grill. Or ya know, since corn is really having a moment right now, our elotes recipe is simple enough for any novice cook and it’s always a hit. We’ve even got recipe for Fresh Corn Butter Pie in our Party Grub cookbook that- ahh fuck it here’s the full recipe. Y’all are lucky we like you. 

Fresh Corn Butter Pie 

Filling:

3 cups fresh corn kernels, cut right off the cob*

½ cup unsweetened plain almond or coconut milk

¼ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

¼ teaspoon salt

Whipped Cream (optional)

Make your favorite pie crust or use store bought. Let it chill out in the fridge while you make the filling. Also, start cranking your oven up to 425°F.

Make the filling: in a blender, throw the corn, milk, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt all together and run that motherfucker for a minute or two to get all the fiber from the corn to break down. It should look smooth. You shouldn’t have to go for more than a minute and a half if you have a decent blender. You know what kinda bullshit blender you’re working with, we don’t. 

On a well-floured surface, roll out your pie dough and press it into a 9-inch pie pan. Cut off any extra hanging over the edges and press the edge of the crust into a pattern: pinch it around your pointer finger or make a pattern with a fork. Whatever, who cares. Life is fleeting. 

Pour that filling right into the pie shell and stick it in the oven. Immediately reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and bake that fucker until the crust is golden and the  center doesn’t look all wet or wobbly if you shake the pie a little, 35-45 minutes. 

Let it cool for at least 1 hour before serving. This pie is great kinda warmish but also tasty as hell if you let it chill overnight and serve it cold. Top it with whipped cream if you wanna get fancy. 

* About 4 large ears of corn. The filling sets so much better if you use fresh corn kernels. If this worked with frozen, we promise we would’ve told you. Use fresh. 

We also got plenty of recipes to keep cool, like our Mixed Berry Summersicles or sip our Spiked Summertime Sweet Tea, liquor optional if you’re participating in Sober September. No matter how you decide to spend Labor Day weekend, we’ve gotta double fist worth’s of summertime recipes for y’all on our website. 

Tomorrow we’ve got a recipe for a Peach Pie Smoothie for our paying supporters because while peach pie sounds ideal right now, it is just entirely too goddamn hot to turn the oven on twice in one weekend. So enjoy it in smoothie form. 

Stay cool y’all, 

Matt + Michelle