Side Dish Stars

This holiday season, the sides steal the show, and the whole family can get involved with this simple dish from chef CHRISTI FERRETTI.

Ferretti, co-owner of Pine Valley Market, shares her recipe for a corn casserole that’s been a Thanksgiving family staple – in part because it was easy enough for anyone to make during the busy cooking day.

“In our family, everybody wanted to help in the kitchen, and it was kind of annoying,” she says. “And so, it was the one thing that the youngest kids could do. It’s been passed through who would make it each year. It kind of became their thing, and then they would graduate to something else, and then the younger one would do it.”

For younger chefs, time-crunched chefs, or just cornbread-loving chefs, the recipe’s mix-and-dump approach ticks one thing off the holiday menu while still being a crowd-pleaser.

Ferretti says you can vary it up by adding cooked and drained sage sausage or chorizo to the mix – or crumbled on top halfway through the baking. Adding in jalapeños would give it a spicy kick.

“I’d be careful about adding cheese because I think that it’s a pretty thick batter, so I feel like it might just not really rise and bake right,” she says.

Ferretti knows holiday menus.

November is a busy time for Pine Valley Market, which takes orders for part or all of the Thanksgiving meal, including turkey, sides, and desserts – all made in-house.

This year’s preorders open November 1 on its website (pinevalleymarket.com).

That’s the same time this year that Ferretti and Pine Valley’s other owners, KATHY WEBB and MATT and CHRISTYANNA DURAND, aim to open their second location of Pine Valley Market at 1611 Pavilion Place in the Mayfaire area.

Thanksgiving orders this year, though, will be handled only out of Pine Valley’s original location at 3520 College Road.

Even the cornbread will be available for those who need the oven free for the nearly hour it takes to bake from scratch.

Whether for Thanksgiving dinner, day-after leftovers, or a random Tuesday night, Ferretti says it’s a go-to dish.

“It’s a Ferretti family thing,” she says. “My son loves it. I make it throughout the year for him just because he likes it.”

Corn Casserole

INGREDIENTS

• 2/3 cup cornmeal (yellow or white)
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (optional)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 can sweet whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 can creamed corn
• 1 egg slightly beaten
• 1 8-ounces container sour cream

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased 2-quart baking dish.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until casserole is set.
• Serves 8

To view more of photographer Megan Deitz’s work, go to megandeitz.com.

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