Just a quick reminder to my Florida readers to remember that the election this November isn't just about the presidency. We have our own state issues to fight for and the Florida Marriage Amendment is at the top of that list. I really appreciated this interview of John Stemberger, president of the Florida Family Policy Council explaining why the amendment is worth fighting for.

Take some time to understand the issue, help your friends get informed and be sure to VOTE IN NOVEMBER!!

I've purchased 40 ears of corn in the past 36 hours.

Yes, you read that right.

When you meet that special someone, you discover that their family has some rather special traditions. When I met Joel, that meant learning all about Corn Oysters. Now, I love me some seafood, but oysters aren't on that list. Fortunately, Corn Oysters have nothing to do with oysters at all. They are all about the corn. From what I can tell they are like fritters, except super thin, not at all cakey, and most importantly made with fresh grated corn.

It's coming up on 9 years since we've been married and I still haven't really figured out how to make Corn Oysters. I started asking Mom Stewart for the recipe right away and, like all many great family foods, it doesn't really seem to exist. She said she just watched her mom make them and each time she'd just eyeballs the flour and tastes to see if they need sugar. As Joel says, you cant measure art. Right.

I tried again last night and now have a sore finger where I encountered the box grater at little too closely. But I did learn a few important lessons yesterday.

One - Use the grater side of the grater, not the shredder. Oops.

Two - The oil has got to be HOT for frying. None of this medium-low business.

Three - Be willing to let your husband take over in the kitchen when his family traditions are at stake.

Back to the 40 ears. I grated 10 last night for the dinner. Joel added 2 more once we figured out I had improperly grated the corn and we needed to fix the consistency of the batter. That left 8 for corn on the cob with friends tomorrow. I was about to let that be the end of it, but tonight, the memory of that fresh corn taste bursting out of the crispy, mushy goodness got the best of me and I went back to Publix for 20 more ears. I'm going to try grating them (properly this time) and freezing the pulp to for a summer-fresh treat sometime this winter. Just experimenting but I'm hoping that fantastic taste won't remain confined to just a few short weeks in the summer.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Corn Oysters - A Sort-of Recipe
In honor of Grandma Brehm, who had the magic touch, and Mom Stewart, who keeps the knowledge in her heart

10 (or so) ears of corn, raw
1 egg
1/4 cup white flour
maybe a little sugar to taste
salt & pepper to taste

1. Grate the corn (not shred!) on a box grater into a fine pulp. Run a butter knife along the ear to make sure to get as much of the milky pulp off as possible. (Let the cat gorge himself in the grated ears - a Stewart tradition)
2. Combine corn pulp with egg, flour, salt and pepper. Add a little sugar (maybe a few teaspoons) if it's not real sweet corn. (Steps 1 and 2 can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated, even a day or so before use. Grating 20 ears or so takes some time. Not something you want to start at 5:45 PM. Believe me - 20 ears will disappear if you have a crowd. Or just one or two aficionados.)
3. Cover bottom of frying pan with oil and heat. I mean, HEAT. I've not done much frying before this, but I have learned that warm oil just seeps in and makes a mushy mess; hot oil sears the outside and does something magical to the center. You want hot, not smoking-point-hot, but close. On our stove, it was around 8 on the dial.
4. Test fry a small amount of batter to make sure you've got things working properly. Spread the batter into a thin puddle. When it starts getting crispy around the edges, turn it with a slotted spatula. This is the tricky part. Be prepared: they will not look pretty. It will probably fall apart and the insides will run out; part of it might seemed burned (unless it really IS burned, then the "seem" part would be inaccurate. Which happens to me a lot.) Fry on the other side until it stays apart enough to get onto a spatula for the trip to a waiting plate. It should be almost paper thin and not at all cake-like (If it's cakey, add a little milk to thin out the batter. But if the batter is impossibly runny, you'll probably need a little more flour instead, a teaspoon or two at a time).
5. Consume as soon as possible with out frying the inside of your mouth. There are varying views on the proper Corn Oyster accompaniment. Joel is firmly in the syrup-or-powdered-sugar camp, and I come down on the with-a-bite-of ham/bacon-and-the-juiciest-homegrown-tomato-you can possibly-find side of fence. Feel free to decide for yourself.

I love you, Joel!