Corn
Corn is a yellow vegetable (though comes in darker colours too), kernels on a cob, that you cook by boiling briefly. Kind of sweet and certainly tasty. When something is said to be corny it is not sensible, even silly or childish. Corn bread is made with corn added to the flour, giving it a particular flavour. Not like sourdough, for instance. Big animals, like cows, love corn, and so do I
Corn was first cultivated about 10 thousand years ago in Mexico. Nowadays it is know all over the world. The USA alone produces over 330 tons. That is a lot of corn. Corn kernels, when fried, pop into light tasty sort of balls that are more than 5 times the size of the original kernel. We call that popcorn which is a favourite snack at the movies with a bit of salt and butter added. Corn is also popular as a base for chowder
A corn on the foot, usually the little toe, is a hard patch of thickened skin often caused by repeated pressure or rubbing on that area. Ill fitting shoes can cause a corn to form. Sometimes a tiny corn can arise from a blocked sweat duct. Such corns are the body protecting itself. Hmmm? So, this thing that is supposedly not good, is actually a self protection response. Wow. How else do I react in protection of me?
Corn is a utility plant. By that I mean all parts are useful. We (and the cows) eat the kernels. The cows also eat the rest of the plant, the whole thing. Great source of fibre. The leaves and stalks can be used to make things like baskets. Corn whiskey uses more than 80% corn mash to make that drink. If we use between 51% and 80% the result is called Bourbon, named after a county in Kentucky
One can also make corn syrup and corn starch, but hey, the Bourbon wins the day. Maybe that is why the cows like it so much? Ever been in a corn maze? Fun. Interesting note too that the Mexican word for corn is maize. So, hope you don’t get a corn on your foot but maybe a corndog at the fair, which, for some, is a corny thing to do. Me? I’m a big fan of mashed potatoes, hamburger patties and cream corn. Yum
contact info: jseiler@yournaturaledge.com