Corn Maque Choux

Corn maque choux ("mock shoe") is an old Cajun dish, also called smothered corn, which is not much different from skillet corn. (Yankees, take heart; all will be made clear). Given my unintentional largess of frozen corn, I decided this dish, along with some glazed carrots, would make an excellent summer dinner.

The recipe is essentially corn, an onion, some garlic, a bell pepper, a couple of tomatoes, and some sort of cream/milk/evaporated milk, cooked down until creamy. I left out the bell pepper, because I didn't have any. Jalapenos would work nicely, too. I also used evaporated milk, because I didn't have any cream or regular milk, but you could use any of the above. And you know, some seasonings wouldn't hurt. I threw in smoked paprika and cayenne pepper. I also added andouille sausage, 'cause I'm cool like that. You could leave it out and keep the dish vegetarian.

6-8 cups corn
one chopped onion
several chopped cloves of garlic
a bell pepper, chopped
a couple of fresh tomatoes or the equivalent amount of canned whole tomatoes, chopped
1/2 - 1 cup evaporated milk (or cream or milk)
1 package andouille sausage, sliced (optional)
1 tablespoon each paprika and cayenne

Saute the onion, garlic and bell pepper in olive oil or bacon fat until soft. Add the sausage, tomatoes and corn. Add the milk. Cook down on medium-low heat, 15-20 minutes, until creamy. Season and serve.

And you know, some grilled shrimp on top of this wouldn't suck at all.