Welcoming harvest season with Cornpatch Meat Balls

There's a radiant, immensely beautiful quality to the light that accompanies these last precious days of August. It glistens like freshly polished gold and envelopes one mind, body and soul, comforting like a warm bath and instilling serenity like the stillest of ponds. When the light takes on this hearty, elegant quality, I am often reminded of childhood days spent at my maternal grandparents' house when I was a little girl, as their backyard corn harvest neared picking time.

Amongst the tomatoes, cucumbers, and grape trees, to the right of my grandma's trusty wash line stood a patch of corn, swaying like starry-eyed teenagers at a school dance, in the breeze that seemed to travel across the towns from the Pacific ocean and land in their humble little Haney yard.

Every year, without fail, when the corn was ready to be picked and enjoyed, we head over to grandma and grandpa's for an afternoon of harvesting and an evening of roasting, a tall bonfire cracking away, and that sublime August heat accompanying every sweet, crunchy, butter drenched bite of corn on the cob.

My grandfather passed away when I was just six years old, effectively putting an end to this lovely annual tradition, which I'm grateful that I got to experience (and can clearly remember) a few times in my life. No doubt influenced by those formative years, whenever August draws to a close, I find myself craving corn more so than at any other time of the year.

Thankfully, even if it doesn't come from my grandparents' backyard any more, there is still a lot of terrific fresh corn to be had in British Columbia, and one rarely has to go further than the nearest produce stand or grocery store to find some top-notch cobs. If you're area isn't famed for its corn, or if you're looking for a corn recipe that can be whipped on a moment's notice any time of the year, then you're in luck!

With a name that can't help but call to mind the changing of the seasons, Cornpatch Meat Balls are quick, filling, and a cinch to make. These tasty little morsels can be made with any ground meat (or a mixture of different meats) that you like (pork and beef are always wonderful together, but turkey or chicken would also be delicious) and have the added fun of being stuffed with tiny cubes of cheese, before being cooked and nestled down into a bed (so hence the "patch" part of this recipe's name) of canned corn.


 
{Perfect for a small family dinner or large crowd alike, this vintage recipe for Cornpatch Meat Balls can be made any time of the year, so long as you've got some canned on hand. Image via Curly-Wurly on Flickr. Click here for a larger version.}



I think this recipe sounds great as it is, but of course you could play around with the seasonings (curry powder instead of the chili would be a yummy idea), vegetables, or other ingredients however you like. If American cheese isn't your favourite, why not slip in tiny pieces of sharp cheddar, smoked gouda, melty provolone, or tangy Roquefort?

This great 1940s dish is pretty much a meal unto itself, though if you're looking to pad out diner further, a salad of fresh greens and mixed herbs in a light, zingy vinaigrette, or alternatively, slices of ripe watermelon or cantaloupe would be a terrific accompaniment.

Corn is a classic, much loved food and one that is as tied to the end of summer as that sublimely lovely golden sunlight, which just happens to share a hue with this excellent vegetable and always reminds me of those last few days of the season before school starts and the ebb and flow of autumn life returns once more.  All the more reason, I do believe, to enjoy as much of it right now as possible.