The Ears of Michigan Are Upon Us!

We here in the great state of Michigan have been harvesting sweet corn for a month now, and thanks to the goodly growing season we experience in the great lakes state, we'll continue to see it harvested for another two months! Now that's fresh!

Selection and Care:
When buying corn, choose ears with medium-sized kernels. Very small kernels are immature, and large kernels have a starchy taste, rather than a sweet one. The husk of the corn should be moist and green. Leaving husks on when storing corn preserves the flavor. At room temperature the glucose in corn will convert to starch in as little as 24 hours. Therefore, refrigeration of this vegetable is critical for maintaining freshness.

Did You Know:

• Michigan produced over 10,000 acres of sweet-corn in the year 2000 for fresh consumption alone?
• One ear of corn averages 800 kernels in 16 rows. A pound of corn consists of approximately 1,300 kernels?
• An acre of corn yielding 100 bushels has about 7,280,000 kernels?
• Sweet corn is rich in vitamin C, iron, thiamine and riboflavin, not to mention fiber?