Midwest Mary

The saying is that corn stalks should be knee-high by the Fourth of July. If we are in the Midwest, we don’t have to go far from home to find a farm with a massive field of cornstalks that high right now.

Iowa and Illinois account for about one-third of the United States corn crop. In fact, 90% of Iowa’s land is devoted to agriculture. Other states that produce large quantities of corn include Nebraska and Minnesota, which also lead in yields. 

Hot off the grill, dripping in butter, and heavily salted or seasoned, sweet corn is a staple at summer barbecues, festivals, and state fairs across the United States. We also use corn in corn flour, cornmeal, hominy, grits, and popcorn, as well as, tortillas, cereals, soups, cooking oil, margarine, corn starch, and salad dressings.

Corn is more than flavorful. It is also nutritious. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, a medium ear of corn is gluten-free, low in fat (without the butter), and high in fiber. It contains about 3 grams of protein, 5 milligrams of sodium, 244 international units of vitamin A, about 15 grams of carbohydrates, small amounts of B vitamins, magnesium, potassium, antioxidants, vitamin C, lutein, and zeaxanthin.

I’m delighted when sweet corn is in season, because I have several recipes that include it, and fortunately the tastiest sweet corn is grown a little over a mile in any direction from my home. Homemade cornbread with and without cheese and jalapeno, corn and poblano pepper soup, corn cake, and corn salad are a few of my favorite recipes with this ingredient.

Last year, I posted my Summer Corn Salad recipe. It’s a side dish I can eat all day long! You might want to check it out.

And, following are some interesting facts on corn.

• Corn silk is essential for pollination.
• There are somewhere between 500 and 1200 kernels in an ear of corn.
• The US produces about 40 percent of the world’s corn according to the USDA.
• Most of the corn you see in Iowa is field corn.
• US farmers produce 9,000 pounds of corn per acre.
• Corn cobs have an even number of rows.
• An acre of corn eliminates 8 tons of carbon dioxide from our air.
• There are 125 calories in a cup of corn.
• An ear of corn has one silk stand for every kernel.
• Each corn plant produces one to three cobs.
• Corn was first domesticated in southern Mexico more than 10,000 years ago.
• Corn is grown on every continent except Antarctica.
• Whether corn is considered a vegetable, grain, or fruit depends on when it’s harvested and the variety of corn.

*©2024, Mary K. Doyle