Edna Lewis's Corn Pudding
Updated October 25, 2021
Karsten Moran for The New York Times
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
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Ingredients
3 tablespoons/42 grams butter, melted, plus more for dish
2 cups/350 grams corn (from about 3 ears)
⅓ cup/67 grams sugar
1 teaspoon/5 grams salt
2 large eggs, beaten
2 cups/480 milliliters whole milk
½ teaspoon/1 gram freshly grated nutmeg
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)
20 grams carbs; 64 milligrams cholesterol; 164 calories; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 8 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 294 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein; 14 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 1 ½-quart baking dish. Cut the corn from the cob into a mixing bowl by slicing from the top of the ear downward. Don’t go too close to the cob; cut only half the kernel, then scrape off the rest with the back of the knife.
- Step 2
Stir sugar and salt into corn. Mix beaten eggs and milk together, then stir into corn mixture. Add melted butter and mix thoroughly.
- Step 3
Spoon mixture into prepared dish and sprinkle with nutmeg. Place the dish in a larger baking dish or roasting pan. Transfer to oven and carefully pour hot water into the larger dish until it comes about halfway up the sides of the smaller baking dish.
- Step 4
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the pudding comes out clean. The pudding will be set but still jiggle.
Private Notes
Comments
I have assembled it, refrigerated it overnight, and baked it the next day very successfully.
In Minnesota we make a Corn Soufflé. 50% more corn in the form of creamed corn. Double the eggs, add 1 cup of panko bread crumbs, and 1 tbsp of ground pepper, preferably white pepper. Skip the nutmeg and milk. Pour mix into a casserole, sprinkle bread crumbs in a thin crust. Dot 5-6 pats of butter. Cook for 75 minutes. Check that the middle is done using a toothpick--it shouldn't wiggle. If it does, cook for another 20 minutes. It's lighter, and has more corn flavor.
I see that some folks have struggled with this recipe (sweetness & set-up) so I'll share tips from my mom's housekeeper. Like Ruby herself, this method is reliably wonderful. -Use canned milk (yep!) -A Tbls of sugar is all you need -No nutmeg- a tiny bit of summer savory instead -Use half canned creamed corn plus fresh -Separate the eggs, beat whites til stiff and fold in last. -No need for a water bath- sets up just fine with a bit of a chewiness around the edges (kid favorite)
As far as I'm concerned, this recipe was a total flop. First of all, there's no flour or corn meal to act as a binder, so no amount of baking time will ever make it set up. Second, the corn kernels are left WHOLE, so this dish is basically "corn OFF the cob with too much nutmeg" I WAS able to rescue the unfortunate result by adding for and cornmeal and running it through the food processor. Then it was pretty good!
@Robin, I concur 100% !
This tasted very nice, but was still liquid after 50 mins at 400 in a water bath. So I took it out of the water bath and cooked it. It was delicious but had a lot of liquid (perhaps due to my way of cooking it). Problematic method, delicious combination of ingredients.