Corny Corn Cakes

This week, we made Corny Corn Cakes. The recipe comes from a great little cookbook by Mollie Katzen called "Salad People and More Real Recipes: A New Cookbook for Preschoolers and Up." Click on the hyperlink if you are interested in browsing a couple of pages. I love her cookbooks; they are filled with great recipes with fresh ingredients made in approachable ways. In addition, each recipe has a series of pictures that highlight each step of the cooking process. This is a great visual schedule for kids and perfect for non-readers! 

First, we mixed our wet ingredients, and prepared our dry ingredients...

Then, we added our wet ingredients to our dry ingredients.

Then, we had great fun mixing them together. 

The kids were offered the choice of syrup or honey to dip their corn fritter....and we garnished with fresh strawberries!

Conversations with the Kids:

So, one child was having so much fun mixing and stirring and cooking with me at the front of the classroom that she did not want to go back to her seat. To gently encourage her to return to her seat...I said:

Me: "Are you going to just stay up here forever?" 

Hilarious child: "YES!" 

Me: "Well, what about college?"

Hilarious child: "The other day, I heard someone on TV say 'don't judge me, I'm in college.'" 

One child was trying to enjoy his corn fritter, but kept picking out the tiny pieces of corn. In an effort to distract him from his task and possibly start a conversation about food he does like, I asked him a question.

Me: "So, tell me...what is your favorite food."

Hilarious Child: "Pancakes without corn."

Someone shared with me that she recently turned 5 years old. Playfully, I told her that I recently turned 5 also. 

Class: "Miss Diana, you're not 5!" "You're older than 5!"

Me: "Well, how old am I then?"

A very kind and loving student: "You're 16!"

Corny Corn Cakes

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 tbs butter, melted

1/2 cup corn, fresh or frozen (I used frozen, since corn on the cob is not in season. And, I increased to 1 cup)

A little butter for the pan (I used coconut oil for sauteing.) 

Syrup, fresh fruit, or powdered sugar for serving (I also offered honey...and we garnished with strawberries.)

First, combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Beat the eggs in a separate large bowl, then whisk in the buttermilk, melted butter & corn.

Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir form the bottom of the bowl until the dry ingredients are all moistened.

Place a skillet over medium heat, and melt in a little butter. Use a 1/2 cup measure with a handle to scoop batter into the hot skillet.

Cook the pancake for about 5 minutes on the first side, or until really golden on the bottom. Then flip and cook on the second side, which will go a little faster; usually 2-3 minutes will do it, depending on the heat.

Serve right away, and eat with syrup, fresh fruit or powdered sugar.

Yield: Ten 4-inch pancakes.