Professional chefs can have their cookery problems just as amateurs do. And one of my early ones would make any American housewife laugh. I came to New York in the fall of 1910. The Ritz opened in December. That first winter seemed to me one continuous struggle to get what I considered simple and basic commodities like leeks for my soups and shallots for my sauces. That winter I also faced the keen disappointment of so many French chefs when they discover that you might just as well try to capture the moon in your hands as to have fresh truffles for cooking. Finally summer rolled around, and I met up with fresh sweet corn.
Now to me, corn had been something that we fed to animals on my grandfather's farm, until I became potager—soup chef—at the Paris Ritz. Then I was introduced to American canned corn which we served very infrequently—usually only on the Fourth of July for our American guests—in a soup called crème Washington, Hut I had never seen corn eaten au naturel and being a little uncertain about cooking it, I decided to try some myself before putting it on the menu. So I ordered fresh corn, had it shucked, and then boiled it for an hour or so. I found, as you can imagine, that it was very tough, quite tasteless, and had an unattractive yellow color. The next time, I tried putting some milk in the water, a standard practice I had learned for keeping many foods white during cooking. But that didn't help either. At that point I took my problem to Fly Sivade, remembered by many old New Yorkers as head chef of the then well-known Knickerbocker Hotel. He was like an older brother to me because he came from the same small French town that I did and our mothers had been girlhood friends. From him I learned what every child in this country knows—that the secret of tender corn is to cook it for not more than eight or ten minutes.
Of course, as soon as I learned how delicious fresh sweet corn can be, I couldn't wait until I had some new corn dishes for our menu. But 1 discovered that many people who love this vegetable have trouble digesting it because of the tough skins that cover the kernels. That was my cue—to find ways of using the pulp without the skin. The recipes that I evolved have had continued popularity during all these forty years. A simple sweet corn purée is one, and a corn ring called turban Washington has been particularly well liked. And would I be true to my heritage if I hadn't come up with a sweet corn soufflé?
My trick is to remove the pulp and leave the skin on the cob. This gives pulp that has more body than corn cut off the cob and run through a sieve. For the best-flavored pulp, use freshly picked corn, of course. Cook the ears in boiling salted water for about 8 minutes. Remove and plunge them into cold water to stop further cooking and also to cool the corn so that it will be easier to handle. With a sharp-tined fork, rip down the rows of kernels, splitting open each kernel, and press out the pulp with the side of the fork.
Sweet Corn Purée
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan and add 2 cups pulp from freshly cooked corn. Season to taste with salt and pepper and hear it. Add a little cream if desired.
Turban Washington
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a saucepan, add 1 ½ cups pulp from freshly cooked corn, and cook until the surplus juice is reduced to almost nothing.
Meanwhile, make a thick béchamel sauce as follows: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan, add 2 tablespoons flour, and cook until it just starts to turn golden. Add 1 cup hot milk and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens. Continue cooking slowly for about 15 minutes, stirring with a whip to keep it very smooth. Beat 1 whole egg and 2 egg yolks together and combine with the bèchamel. Add the corn pulp and reheat, being very careful not to let it boil.
Correct the seasoning and pour into a well-buttered ring mold set in a pan of hot water. Bake in a moderately hot oven (375° F.) for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the mixture is firm. Remove from the oven but leave the pudding in the mold for a few minutes to set. Loosen the edges by running a small knife around. Invert and unmold on a heated serving dish. Fill the center with baby Lima beans or with mushrooms and Lima beans, heated in butter and cream.
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