Fresh Corn Johnnycakes

I am always up for pancakes for dinner (or breakfast, or lunch) and I am always up for anything involving fresh corn.  And as the fresh corn season we are in slowly moves towards fall, I am using it before I lose in in everything from salsa to salad to plain old corn on the cob.  But one of my favorite ways to use corn is in good old-fashioned johnnycakes, made with corn puree and cornmeal and topped with fresh corn and did I mention that I love corn?

These may have been brought on by the fact that we just got back from Vermont, and the corn in August in Vermont is as high as an elephant’s eye.

So literally the very first meal I made when we got home were these johnnycakes.  They are a little more robust than regular pancakes, what with the cornmeal and the corn puree in addition to flour and buttermilk and a few other things.  I topped them with some fresh thyme, a few of the leftover corn kernels and for a sweet sensation, a little drizzle of maple syrup.

You want to keep the syrup really just to a drizzle so the maple flavor doesn’t overwhelm the corn.

All of this wonderfulness comes together really quickly, and is a fun and different way to luxuriate in those last wonderful sweet days of summertime and fresh corn.  It goes so fast!

Fresh Corn Johnnycakes

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• Yield: About 6 johnnycakes, which in my house is 2 servings!

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Ingredients

• Kernels cut from 3 ears of corn
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, plus a little more for garnish
• 3/4 cups flour
• 1/2 cup fine ground cornmeal
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Fresh ground pepper
• Maple syrup for topping

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Instructions

1. Using a blender or a food processor, puree 1 1/2 cups of the corn kernels, the butter and the buttermilk.
2. Pour the mixture into a bowl and stir in the thyme and 1 more cup of the corn kernels (you should have about 1/2 cup of the corn kernels left over for the garnish, give or take).
3. Mix the flour, cornmeal, baking soda and baking powder together. Add the pureed mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined.
4. Heat an electric griddle to medium high, or put a large skillet over medium high heat with a little butter in it. I like to use a griddle because it make the cakes easier to flip!
5. Ladle about 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each cake. It’s a thick batter, so you can quickly mush it down a little into a pancake shape.
6. Cook the cakes for about 2 minutes, carefully flip them and cook them for 2 minutes more.
7. Arrange them in a stack and top them with a modest amount of maple syrup, a scattering of corn kernels, a little fresh thyme and a grinding of fresh pepper. Serve ’em while they are hot!