CORN ON THE RUN

CORN ON THE RUN

(My husband's recipe)

Set a big, covered pot with about 3 inches of water on a hot stove. Prop open the kitchen door with a broomstick. Run through the corn patch, snapping several ears off the stalks and then shucking as you approach the kitchen. Dump the ears into the water that is now boiling, cover the pot, slam a stick of butter, salt and pepper, and a pile of napkins onto the table. Return to the stove and remove the corn from the steam with tongs, pop it onto a plate, cover it with a clean dish towel, and run it to the table. Cover ears with butter and salt (the pepper is optional), and eat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat until all ears are gone. Do it again tomorrow. (Now that's fresh corn!)

GRILLED CORN

The traditional method has you peel away the outer husk without actually removing it, remove the inner silky threads, then wrap the outer husk back around the ear. Soak the ear in water and place it on the grill, where it cooks by steaming. This method produces tasty corn, but to me it is missing the taste of the fire. So I follow this method until the corn is just cooked, which takes about 15 to 20 minutes over a low fire. I then remove the husks, brush on a little butter, season with salt and pepper, and roll the ears around the grill ever so slightly, just to add a little char.

Another method calls for the interior silk to be removed and then for the corn to be wrapped in foil along with butter and seasonings and roasted in the coals for 12 to 15 minutes. This is also an excellent method, although again it misses the taste of the fire.

Whichever technique you use, summer corn cooked on the grill is a welcome addition to any meal, its natural simplicity making for some outstanding eating.

- From 'The Thrill of the Grill,' by Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby (William Morrow and Co.)

ORANGE-TARRAGON-CHILI BUTTER

Peel from 1/2 orange

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 teaspoon anchovy paste

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili puree

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons chopped green onions

1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves

Put all the ingredients but the butter and fresh tarragon leaves in a blender and mix well. In a saucepan, heat the butter until bubbling. With the motor turned on, pour the butter slowly through the opening of the blender lid until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove from the blender and stir in the tarragon leaves. Generously brush butter all over ears of corn. Makes about 1/2 cup.

- From 'Crazy for Corn,' by Betty Fussell (Harper Perennial)