I love the fourth of July! I am thankful for my country, and the men and women who sacrifice in many different ways to serve our country and fight for our freedom. The fourth of July carries with it many great memories for me. As far back as I can remember until my late teen early twenty years , we always had family gatherings on the fourth of July. We had great times together playing games, having fish fries (and all the fixings!), eating home made ice cream, singing (or listening to music be sung or played), just hanging out with one another, shooting off/watching fire works (which usually meant being eaten by mosquitos). We would spend most of the day and into the night hours celebrating the fourth of July. I miss those days! Now us kids have grown up, have families of our own, and most live in other places. It is difficult to get together. We haven’t really done so in several years.  If you are related to me and reading this post I seriously think it is time for us to plan a family reunion!

This year for the fourth of July we were able to spend it with my parents, and some family. It is the first time in several years where we have lived close enough to drive, spend the day, and then drive back. It’s so awesome! We had a fourth of July lunch which consisted of ribs (which Andrew smoked the night before), hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad, baked beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, and corn on the cob. Then we had my mom’s cheesecake! I love my mom’s cheesecake, and specially requested that she make it, which she happily did! 🙂 (I’ll have to share the recipe with you soon.)  We loved visiting with everyone, and the kids had a great time at Papa and Nana’s. Emma loved riding the mower with Papa. It was the first time I’ve seen her do that. She also liked running in the house. She would say “set go” in a very high pitched voice, and then run. 🙂 After lunch David was watching some cartoons, and my grandpa was attempting to take a nap in the chair. I believe David kind of woke him up, but it was so sweet to see them together. David loves papa Harvey!

 

After we returned home we sat on the porch and watched the fire works from our neighbors houses. Thank you neighbors for putting on such a great firework display! 🙂

Fourth of July and Corn on the cob go hand in hand in my mind for more than one reason. My dad was a farmer growing up and he always planted lots of sweet corn! So every year around the fourth of july we would freeze corn. Later in my teenage years I began to dread the coming of this task! We would put away tons of corn in the freezer. The whole process would sometimes take two or three days. It was exhausting! It was one of those things I was thankful not to have to do once I moved out. However, quite a few years later,  I am not only nostalgic, but understand the rewards of putting away fresh corn in the freezer! This week I did just that! My dad supplied me with a couple dozen ears, and I now have it bagged and in the freezer! I am excited about how awesome it will taste this fall and winter! 🙂

I learned a few things working with my mom all those years putting away corn. She and my grandmother, who also used to put away mind blowing amounts of corn, simplified the process over the years. It is now quite simple really. All you need is time, pots of boiling water, ice, a sharp knife, and a cutting hand that never gets tired. 🙂

The first step is to shuck the corn, and clean it of as many silk hairs as you can. Don’t knock yourself out too much trying to remove all the silk hairs, they mostly will come off in the boiling water.  Next put the corn in a pot of water and bring it to a boil. Let boil for two to three minutes max. Your not cooking the corn, just blanching it.

Take the corn out of the boiling water and put it in a sink filled with cold ice water.

Let it stay in the cold water for a minute or two. Then lay aside on a towel or drying mat, and let cool completely. Walk away for an hour or so and go do something! It is extremely important that the corn be cooled and dry.

Then you can cut the corn off the cob! (I guess you could also freeze it on the cob. I choose not to for two reasons. One, it takes up more room in the freezer, two, we like it better cut off.) I get a large bowl, and then put a smaller bowl upside down in the larger bowl. This raises the cob up so it is easier to cut off. It will save your wrist! Also, make sure you have a sharp knife!

Then just bag it up in freezer bags! I bagged about seven quart size bags with two cups of corn in each bag. That’s enough for us at a meal. When I’m ready to take the corn out of the freezer and cook it. I will put it in a microwave safe dish, add a little butter, salt and pepper, and sometimes a touch of milk is needed. I will then heat it up until it’s hot and ready to serve!

 

By the way, this is our kids on fourth of July morning before leaving the house. They are both sitting in time out together! I forget why exactly, but I learned that I need to buy another time out matt. Sitting together is just not going to work! 🙂 It was all fun and games sitting together. It was so cute though that I tried to discreetly snap a picture. 🙂

PK