Fix-It and Forget-It

Need a nice, easy, down-home side dish to round out a family meal? We suggest Cornbread Casserole. Continue Reading...

This recipe can be personalized in a million ways. Use ground turkey or chicken instead of the beef. Leave out the green pepper and double the corn. Substitute cooked macaroni for the noodles. Throw in some canned beans. Continue Reading...

We can get a roaring debate going around our house about whether to eat corn on the cob or off. Continue Reading...

This may be one of those topics—like religion and politics—that are best avoided during social occasions. Botanically speaking, it can be argued that corn is a vegetable, a grain, or a fruit—or all three.

But we’re not speaking botanically. From a menu-planning point of view, is corn a vegetable? Would you serve roast beef with mashed potatoes and corn and consider it a well-rounded meal, or would you feel like you needed another “real” vegetable to make this a nutritionally correct meal? (And by “real” vegetables we mean something that our kids would probably consider less appealing than corn. Something like beets, say, or a green salad with tomatoes.) Or put it this way: Do the fiber and yummy taste of corn offset the hefty carb count?

Wherever you come out on this question, we think you’ll agree that our recipe for Cheesy Corn is a winner of a side dish. What you serve it with is up to you. (But we’d probably add that green salad!)

Cheesy Corn
Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook, Revised & Updated, page 230
Makes 10 servings
Prep. Time: 5-7 minutes
Cooking Time: 4 hours
Ideal slow-cooker size: 4-qt.

3 16-oz. pkgs. frozen corn
8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, cubed
¼ cup butter, cubed
3 Tbsp. water
3 Tbsp. milk
2 Tbsp. sugar
6 slices American cheese, cut into squares

1. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Mix well.
2. Cover. Cook on Low 4 hours, or until heated through and the cheese is melted.