Styling Corn for the Summer Table
Two Approaches
Corn’s beauty isn’t just in its ear of corn form, but in its bright pops of color and the tough sculptural shape of its kernels. Currently in season and readily accessible, corn is the star of today’s newsletter. Rather than focus on traditional American ways of eating corn, I’m sharing two Filipino dishes which showcase corn in unexpected ways. Corn was introduced to the Philippines in the 1500s via the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade from Mexico. These two dishes symbolize the creativity in which Filipinos have taken corn and made it their own. But today’s newsletter isn’t about the recipes, it’s about what I would do once the recipes were made and ready to serve. Using art and design references, I’ll share two ways to style a table, to provide more depth and context to corn.
Approach #1—A Regal Table for Suam na Mais
I love soup in the summer. Suam na Mais is a Kapampangan soup made of fresh native white corn, shrimp, chicken, pork, and leafy vegetables. Here is a recipe that provides step by step details to make this creamy, delicious soup.
Inspiration for the Table
Some of the best inspiration comes from different visual mediums—art, jewelry, architecture, graphic design, music, film, fashion. Sometimes it’s not just about having a specific style to direct you, but also having multiple visual and emotional examples of what that style means to you.
This gorgeous piece of jewelry provides two materials that could be beautifully styled with corn—gold and pearl. Maybe its a pearl shell to hold some salt on the table, or a gold spoon.
There’s something heavenly going on in this Oscar look above. Seeing this maize yellow in two different materials, along with the delicate embroidered flowers, feels very relevant to a table experience I would want to have with corn.
My first instinct would be to put the corn soup in a delicate blue and white bowl. These above examples are pieces of art found in museums, but you might be able to find something similar in an antique store near you.
There’s also an alternative idea of putting the soup in a shallow, bright-yellow bowl. A yellow background might make the corn kernels pop when they float to the surface of the soup. If that’s the case, I would create a blue floral arrangement for the table. This example looks like it combines hyacinth with a blue-dyed tuberose.
If I went with a blue plate, I would prefer to see a yellow arrangement to bring out the corn in the soup. This one on the right is a combination of chrysanthemums and crespedia, reminding me of the two-tone yellow Oscar look.
Approach #2—An Earthy Table for Ginataang Mais
Here is a recipe for Ginataang Mais (corn rice pudding with coconut milk). Rice puddings are found throughout Filipino cuisine, including Champorado, the chocolate rice pudding. I love how this recipe uses corn in a sweet way and also combines sticky rice with sugar and coconut milk.
Inspiration for the Table
When I think of the term earthy, I think of natural browns that mimic soil and materials like clay. I imagine wooden tables and floral arrangements that feel both delicate and voluminous, and worldly indigenous textiles with complimentary colors found in nature.
Serving the pudding in an artifact-like clay bowl would make the most impact.
This interior image serves as color inspiration for what else I might serve alongside the Ginataang Mais—the same colors represented in pandan, watermelon or cherries.
Unexpected utensils are always welcome, especially when it comes to simple dishes.
I love the idea of a simple table with an earthy monochromatic individual place setting, and also seeing the yellow of the corn subtlety reflected in the arrangement.
This Halston caftan screams corn (at least for me), but also reminds us that the yellow and green of corn can be contrasted against a black backdrop and complimented with oranges and reds.
It’s important to let your imagination go wild. To start with a good meal, sometimes we need to start with something unexpected that has nothing to do with the table. Maybe its a color, or a smell, or a feeling. Let that guide you, and just find your own direction through self-expression.
x Vanessa
I have to try suam na mais! It looks similar to tinola without the ginger.
I love all these STUNNING visual connections!