By Chuck Martin
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The scarecrow costume and actress, Emily Jude Stewart, of The Childrenšs Theatre, poses at The Maize at Turpin Farms in Anderson Township (Glenn Hartong photo illustration) | ZOOM |

A soggy spring delayed its arrival, but Tristate-grown sweet corn has finally made it to stores and farmer's markets. Here are 10 reasons we love to eat sweet corn. You can probably come up with 10 more:

1. Eating it makes you feel like a kid again. Sweet corn is best sloppily gnawed from the cob, leaving a few stray kernels on the cheeks on in the corners of the mouth. We also like it when you bite down and corn juice squirts in someone's eye across the table. Oh, sorry.

2. A legitimate reason to eat real butter and salt. Fake, wimpy margarine on sweet corn? Please. Save the margarine for your rice cakes. A sprinkle of zesty Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning? Don't think so. Sweet corn deserves nothing but a shower of honest-to-goodness sodium chloride.

3. Debating how best to butter it. Do you politely spread butter on every row of kernels with a knife, or twirl the hot cob over a stick of butter with abandon? The strangest method we've heard: Butter one side of soft bread, pick up the bread and drag the corn through the buttered side. Nice.

4. A few redeeming nutritional qualities. It's not exactly broccoli, but corn is high-fiber, high-carb and a fair source of vitamin A. It has only 1 gram of fat, no cholesterol and 83 calories. Until you smear on the butter, of course.

5. Killer names. Ambrosia, Bodacious, Double Delight, Platinum Lady, Ice Queen, Temptation, Hooker's Sweet Indian, Trucker's Delight and How Sweet It Is. Are those really sweet corn varieties, or racy movies on late-night cable? We're just glad no one has introduced corn called "Larry Flynt's Desire."

6. It goes with everything: Burgers, brats, chops, steaks, lobster, shrimp, tacos, juicy tomato salad, maybe even tofu. Beer, wine, iced tea, grape Kool-Aid - anything tastes great with corn.

7. Arguing about how to best cook it. Boiled for 2 minutes or more? With salt, sugar or milk? How about grilling, roasting or microwaving? How about just eating it raw? Fact is, it's hard to make sweet corn taste bad no matter how you cook it.

8. It's so American. Flying Old Glory from your SUV pales to chomping corn. Virtually no one else is bold enough to tear corn from a cob with their bare teeth except us. Still ticked at the Frenchies over that Iraq thing? Serve corn on the cob and call them "Freedom Ears."

9. You can eat as much as you want and not feel like a pig. (Unless it's served in a trough.) So you buzz through a dozen ears. Big deal. They're only tiny little kernels.

10. It's a rite of summer. Like swatting mosquitoes, licking cones and sniffing sunscreen, eating corn off the cob makes us feel like there's no school or work tomorrow. Even when there is.

Where to go if you're sweet on corn

Buy corn as soon after it's picked as possible. Look for ears with bright green, snugly fitting husks and golden brown silk. Kernels should be plump and milky, and come all the way to the ear's tip.

• Aichholz Farm Market, 3920 Round Bottom Road, Anderson Township; 233-3276.

• Barn 'n' Bunk Farm Market, Ohio 73 and Wayne-Madison Road, Trenton; (513) 988-9211.

• Boone County Farmers' Market, Burlington Pike (between Limaburg Road and Camp Ernst Road), Burlington; (859) 586-6101.

• Findlay Market, Over-the-Rhine. Locally grown produce in farmers' shed 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, May to October.

• Hidden Valley Fruit Farm, 5474 N. Ohio 48, Lebanon; (513) 932-1869.

• Jungle Jim's Market, 5440 Dixie Highway, Fairfield; 674-6000.

• Newtown Farm Market, 3950 Round Bottom Road, Anderson Township; 561-2004.

• Pipkin's Fruit & Vegetable Market, 5035 Cooper Road, Montgomery; 791-3175.

• Warren County Farmers' Market, TSC Tractor Supply Store, 505 W. Central, Springboro.

• Windmill Farm Market, 1454 East Ohio 73, Springboro. (937) 885-3965.

Recipes

Orange-Tarragon-Chile Butter

Peel from 1/2 orange

1/4 cup orange juice

1 teaspoon anchovy paste

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile puree

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 tablespoons chopped green onions

1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

8 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

Put all ingredients except butter and fresh tarragon in blender or food processor and pulse to mix. Heat butter in saucepan until bubbling.

With blender running, pour in melted butter in slow stream until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from blender and stir in fresh tarragon. Brush corn with butter before serving. Makes about 11/2 cups.

Crazy for Corn (HarperPerennial; $17.50)

Corn Soup with Salsa

CORN AND ROASTED TOMATO

SALSA

1 large ripe tomato

1 sprig thyme

2 sage leaves

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh corn kernels (uncooked)

Salt and pepper, to taste

CORN SOUP

1 medium onion

1/4 small carrot

2 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 sprig thyme

1 bay leaf

1 small piece prosciutto or smoked bacon

3 cups fresh corn kernels

4 cups chicken stock

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons half-and-half

To make salsa, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel and seed tomato, then cut into 1/2-inch dice. In a small baking dish, toss tomato with thyme and sage and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Put dish in oven and roast 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Remove thyme sprig and sage leaves. Toss salsa with remaining olive oil and corn and season to taste. Set aside or refrigerate until needed.

To make soup, peel and finely dice onion, carrot and garlic, and stew slowly in butter with a little water, covered, until onion is translucent. Add thyme, bay leaf and prosciutto or bacon, and stew about 4 minutes longer. Add corn and cook for another minute.

Pour in stock, add salt and bring to boil. Shut off heat, cover pot and let stand 3 minutes. Remove thyme, bay leaf and pork and puree soup in blender or food processor for 3 minutes. Strain puree through medium-mesh sieve and add half-and-half. Reheat soup to just below boil and serve, garnishing each bowl with tablespoon of salsa. Makes 6 servings.

Chez Panisse Vegetables (HarperCollins; $32.50)

Corn Pudding

11/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup finely diced yellow onion

6 large ears corn, enough to yield about 3 cups kernels

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup cream, evaporated milk or fresh milk

1 cup grated or crumbled cheese, such as smoked gouda,

cheddar or fresh goat cheese

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 tablespoon chopped marjoram

Salt and pepper, to taste

Paprika, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter 6-cup gratin dish. Melt butter in skillet over low heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, just until soft and lightly colored, about 10 minutes.

While onion is cooking, remove corn kernels by running knife down each side of cobs over shallow plate. Set aside. Turn knife over to dull side and press it down length of cob, squeezing out rest of corn and the milk. Set aside.

Bring 1 quart of water to boil and cook whole kernels 1 minute (whether or not water returns to boil). Drain.

Beat eggs and add cream, cooked corn kernels, corn milk, cooked onion, cheese, herbs and 1 teaspoon salt. Season with pepper and pour into buttered gratin dish. Shake a few dashes of paprika over the top. Bake on center rack of oven until puffed and golden, about 45 minutes. Serve warm. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Local Flavors (Broadway; $39.95)

Corn's on the menu

Even in season, it's not easy finding sweet corn in restaurants - perhaps either because chefs think corn is too low-brow for their menus, or maybe they believe most people would rather cook their own at home.

Otherwise, church festivals, held in July and August, are great places to eat fresh, locally grown corn. (For a list of summer church festivals with a description of food served, go to www.thinkingchicken.com.)

Here are a few Greater Cincinnati restaurants that serve corn:

• Aioli , 700 Elm St., downtown (929-0525): Layered Ravioli with Oyster and Shiitake Mushrooms, Sweet Corn, Braised Spinach and truffled Corn Broth; and Seared Moulard Duck Breast with Sweet Corn Flan, Fruit Chutney and Sherry-Bacon Vinaigrette.

• The Heritage, 7664 Wooster Pike, Plainville (561-9300): Boiled, on-the-cob (available on limited basis; call ahead).

• Valley Vineyards, 2276 East U.S. Route 22, Morrow (899-2485): Boiled, on-the-cob.

Written resources

• Corn is Maize (HarperTrophy; $4.99)

• Crazy for Corn (HarperPerennial; $17.50)

• The Story of Corn (out-of-print)

• Totally Corn Cookbook (Celestial; $4.95)