Creamy, Cheesy, and pairs perfectly with any holiday or dinner meal! Soft and fluffy with a hints of Asiago cheese. Your family will love it!
This dish is one my Mom didn’t make often as I can only recall it a few times her making it but when she did make it I went nuts over it.
Her recipe was pretty basic and it didn’t call for heavy cream – she used condensed milk and onions. Now I’ve grown to appreciate them and even love them in some dishes but not in this. No, not in this. Well due to her not making it that often I honestly forgot about it.
It wasn’t until a month or so ago I saw on Pinterest something similar to what Mom used to make by Chef-In-Training (love her site btw!) Immediately all those childhood memories came back and I had to make it. I looked through my old family recipes and found Mom’s and went to town.
The only real difference between my sweet corn casserole was one used all milk and the other used condensed milk. This type of casserole is pretty universal and standard – 2 eggs, 1 cup liquid, flour to make the slurry and butter. The change-up comes with the add-ins meaning corn, seasoning, cheese, crispy bacon and so forth.
Using milk vs cream vs half and half
This Corn Casserole is one to keep in your recipe files as you can go nuts with it on the variations you can make with it. Since I wanted that creamy texture I opted for half cream and half milk
Using all heavy cream made it too heavy and rich. However, if you wanted to, you could most certainly go with all half and half. This keeps is light enough but has enough cream to make it decadent.
I tried it with all milk but it was too runny and didn’t have that creamy consistency I prefer in my souffle-type-casseroles.
Fresh vs Frozen vs Canned Corn
As for the corn Mom only ever used fresh corn off the cob. Now she has used canned before but I can taste the difference. I like canned corn but nothing, nothing beats the taste of corn off the cob!
Since I’m a think-ahead-type-of-girl I had about 5 quarts of corn off the cob frozen in the freezer. I grabbed a bag and had at it. This honestly can’t be any easier to make.
If you don’t have fresh corn readily available you can totally go with frozen corn. Canned corn will work but you have to drain it super well and honestly, it’s not the same as fresh frozen or from the cob.
Adding cheese to your Creamy Corn Casserole
Now Mom never added cheese to hers but since I LOVE cheese I left it almost the same except I garnished it with just a wee bit of Asiago.
Why? Why not! I actually like the flavor marriage of sweet corn and Asiago. It just ‘makes sense’ to me. This dish cooks up in under 30 minutes and sets up beautifully.
The Most Important Tip
The key to any casserole is once you remove it from the oven, you need to let it rest for a bit to set and firm up. Kind of like lasagna. Did you ever take the lasagna out of the oven and then immediately go to cut it only to have to fall into a big ol’ pile of mush; delicious mush but still mush. It’s not visually appealing at all.
As I pulled this out of the oven Mr. Fantabulous walked by and looked at it, started to walk away, stopped and came back for a second look.
He asked what it was so I said; “it’s a corn casserole souffle-type thing my Mom used to make”. He then asked if he liked it. Why do people ask this? I can barely remember what I like yet I am to know what you like? I said “Probably but I’ve never made it before. I forgot about this dish until recently when I saw someone post theirs.” He just shrugged, asked when dinner was and walked away.
While this was resting I got the rest of the dinner plated – creamy mashed potatoes, roasted chicken and honey buttered biscuits. I swear I really need one of those big ol’ dinner bells in my kitchen just because I want to see Mr. Fantabulous come running to the table.
It’s funny as my Dad had one of those big bells outside and would use it to ring through the neighborhood to let us know it was time to come home. He would ring it slowly 10 times and if he didn’t see us approaching the house by the time the last bell rung we were in big trouble.
For me, all it took was a single bite to fall back in love with this dish. It’s eggy and creamy, firm and corn-y.
Honestly, I can’t say whether or not Mr. Fantabulous liked it because I was in my own little world during dinner thinking about this dish and just times when Mom would make it. It wasn’t until the next day when I made us a plate of leftovers for lunch did I remember just how AMAZING this is the day-after.
Again, this is like lasagna and chili. Those 2 dishes are always better the next day. I’m not sure why with this – maybe it’s all the sweetness of the corn or the cheese or the cream but whatever it is, I literally could have sat down with the rest of the casserole dish in front of me and ate the entire thing!
Think Thanksgiving and Christmas side dish!
Definitely keep this recipe handy in your kitchen as it’s one you’re going to make often! This one certainly got bumped to the top of the recipe lists for sides in my kitchen! But wait, there’s more! If you want to make this a full-blown dinner casserole you can add in cooked chicken, turkey, pork or ham! As I said, the list is endless!
Making this ahead and reheating
So many of you asked if you could make this ahead of time and if so, how to reheat it.
Yes, you can make this ahead of time though I would omit the cheese until you reheat it. Sometimes “reheated” cheese gets funky. Once you bake it all the way through allow it to cool completely before wrapping and storing in the fridge. You can make this up to 2 days in advance.
I would not freeze this as this type of texture (custardy and creamy) would most likely separate when you reheat it. Since this only takes 30 minutes or so to bake, just make it and store in the fridge.
To reheat, bring the pan to room temperature while you heat the oven to 350F. Cover the pan in foil and reheat for about 25=30 minutes or until warmed through. Once warmed, uncover, add the cheese (if using) and bake uncovered until melted.
Adding other items to this Creamy Corn Casserole
You can easily transform this dish into a main dish but adding some protein to it. Things that work really well in this dish:
- Shredded or cubed cooked chicken
- Diced Ham
- Crispy Bacon
- Want it spicy? Add minced jalapeño!
- Want more veggies? Add in chopped roasted red peppers
- Want it even more cheesy? Add in cubes of cheddar and when you add the last bit of cheese (Asiago or whatever else cheese) add buttered bread crumbs and bake for a crunchy, cheesy topping!
Baked Creamy Corn Casserole
Whether it’s a side dish or a main dish, this Baked Creamy Cheesy Corn Casserole is a huge family favorite!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup milk, divided
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoon butter, unsalted
- 1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4–5 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen (thawed) – well drained
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4–1/2 cup shredded Asiago (optional)
- Chives for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F, rack in the middle. Lightly spray a 2 quart baking dish.
- In a medium-to-large saucepan over medium heat add in the cream, 1/4 cup milk, sugar and butter. Bring to a boil. While the cream mixture is heating up make a slurry of the flour and remaining 1/4 cup milk by whisking together until well combined.
- Whisk together the eggs until well beaten. Once the milk comes to a boil, add in the flour slurry and whisk until thickened slightly – ~30 seconds to a minute. Remove from the heat and add in the corn and salt mixing to combine. Slowly add in the eggs while mixing the entire time – you do not want the eggs to curdle. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is puffy and golden brown. *See note if using cheese
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving so it can firm up and set.
Notes
If you’re topping it with cheese remove the dish 25 minutes after baking. Sprinkle the cheese on and then return to the oven for another 5 minutes.
Bridget Haigh says
Delicious! I didn’t have enough frozen corn, so I added frozen mixed veggies. Turned out great!
TKWAdmin says
Oh I bet that was amazing! Great way to use what you have on hand!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Southern Lady says
Of course you bake all of the calories out, lol! Seriously, it’s really good, I add about a Tbsp of chopped jalapeño!
Sandra says
Thank you! What size baking dish should be used for the recipe as-is? Happy Thanksgiving!
Julie says
Do you bake this covered? Also can you make the night before?
TKWAdmin says
Hi Julie!
No it’s not covered and yes you can make the night before and reheat the next day.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Haley Nelson says
Hello! I have made this once before and it was so good. I am going to make it for thanksgiving. Due to our schedules, is it possible to make the day before and just re-heat the day of? What do you re-heat at In the oven? Thanks!
TKWAdmin says
Hi Haley!
First, happy Thanksgiving! Second, thank you! So happy you loved it!
Yes you can bake the day prior and reheat the next day. Just bring the baking dish to room temp, cover with foil and reheat at 350f til warmed through ~20-25 minutes.
You may need to stir to re-combine but it’s still delicious!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Rana says
Can you make this ahead of time?
TKWAdmin says
Yes, I’ve made it the day prior and reheated it in the oven the day of serving
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Sandra says
Hi! Can i double this recipe and still make it in one baking dish?
TKWAdmin says
Hi! Sure, as long as your dish is big enough. It may take a bit longer to bake depending on the size of your pan you’re using. If you pan is really high/deep but not that long it would take longer.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Sandra says
Thank you! What size baking dish should be used for the recipe as-is? Happy Thanksgiving!
Sandra says
Ooops, just saw the 2 quart dish. Thanks!
TKWAdmin says
Anytime!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
TKWAdmin says
I used a 13×9” oval pan which is ~ 2 qrt.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Carol Wagner says
I will be using your baked corn recipe this Thanksgiving and adding it to my recipe file. My mother in law used to serve baked corn For the holidays.
Browsing through the comments I was happy to see your reply about using half and half…it’s always in my refrigerator.
TKWAdmin says
Yeah! Baked corn is simply a must for the holidays in my house!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Evelyn cornwell says
I am a novice cook! I have 3 questions: you mention liking half and half in your recipe. How would you go about using it instead of the milk or the heavy cream? Can I use salted butter and leave out the 1 tsp salt? Would Gouda smoked cheese work well mixed into this casserole? I am looking forward to taking this to apot luck!
TKWAdmin says
Hi Evelyn,
Happy to help 🙂
1. To use just all half and half go with 1 cup total in place of the milk and cream 🙂
2. Yes you can use salted butter and omit the added salt though always taste your food for seasoning.
3. I love smoked Gouda so I see no reason why it wouldn’t work. The cheese is just added as a topping. For that matter, cheddar would even work. I love asiago as it adds a great flavor contrast as it’s strong.
Post a pic of when you make it on our Facebook page or on Instagram (tag me)!
I’d love to see it!
Jennifer says
Would this work with regular corn (not sweet?) A local coop grocery store makes something like this as part of their hot food bar and it is always delicious!! We happened to try growing corn in our garden for the first time this year and the kernel texture came out a bit more sticky than super sweet corn that I was hoping for and it was not sweet at all. Hoping to make something out of the corn (since it isn’t as tasty to eat off the cob).
TKWAdmin says
Hi Jennifer,
It should. The recipe has sugar in it. If the corn is not as sweet as you like, you could kick it up to say 2 Tbl of sugar in the recipe.
Best Kitchen Wishes!