Joliet Junior Woman's Club to host dinner in cornfield at Siegel's Cottonwood Farm

LOCKPORT – When members from the Joliet Junior Woman’s Club approached Sue Siegel to discuss possible fundraiser options, Siegel knew the time had come.

For the past two years, the owners of Bloomsbury Farm in Iowa – Dave and Karen Peterson, Iowa farmer friends of Siegel – hosted an upscale “Cuisine in the Corn” event, which they repeated this year, Siegel said.

Enamored by its charm and success, Siegel couldn’t wait to host a similar but lower-key event at Siegel’s Cottonwood Farm in Lockport, which Siegel owns and operates with her husband, Paul.

The result is “Howl at the Moon: Cuisine in the Corn for a Cause,” a fundraising dinner served on tables lined up inside the farm’s corn maze. The length of that path, said Lauren McFarland, past president and event chair, depends on attendance that night, which she anticipates will be large. She surmises the row will be about 800 feet long.

McFarland, like Siegel, thinks the idea is a good one. Proceeds will benefit organizations that help women and children, McFarland added.

“I’ve never been in a cornfield, much less ate in one,” McFarland said. “But I have been to a wedding on a farm, and it was one of the best weddings I had attended. It was so casual and relaxed; everyone enjoyed it so much.”

“Cuisine in the Corn” will include live entertainment by Soul Motion, as well as Alex Hoffer; a hayrack ride; a bonfire; and food that includes salad, beef brisket, chicken breast, pulled pork, and cheesey potatoes, along with Mexican corn and s’more stations.

S’more toppings will include the traditional Hershey’s chocolate bars, as well as peppermint patties and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. The last is Siegel’s favorite s’more topping; she is not a “peppermint person,” she said.

“Peanut butter cups make a nice, gooey s’more,” Siegel said.

By comparison, the Bloomsbury Farm “Cuisine in the Corn” was an elegant plated dinner, Siegel said, featuring food from ingredients from local farmers. High school students dressed in tuxedos and white gloves assisted at the event, she added. For entertainment, a pianist played on an antique piano.

“It wasn’t easy bringing the piano into the cornfield,” Siegel said.

Although the Joliet Junior Woman’s Club event will be less formal – and still several weeks away – preparations already are in place, Siegel said. After locating an ideal spot in the 15-acre corn maze – one completely surrounded by corn – the Siegels cleared an area and began spraying for mosquitoes.

Not many people have experienced life on a farm or are even aware of how large Siegel’s Cottonwood Farm is, so Siegel wants the setting to be beautiful and perfect, she said.

Although patrons will dine on sweet corn grown on Siegel’s farm, that field was not a good location for the party.

“The sweet corn field is lighter, shorter and plowed down now. There’s just a few acres left,” Siegel said. “Field corn is taller and darker green. Sweet corn almost looks unhealthy when it’s next to field corn.”

Occasionally, Siegel has surprised her husband with impromptu picnics in the cornfield when he was combining, but she never has eaten a meal at night, under the stars, when the corn was 16 feet high, she said.

“It’s almost like a tunnel area, like looking up through a skylight,” Siegel said. “It will have an aura that’s just magical.”

But be sure to listen closely, Siegel added. One must might hear the corn “whisper.”

IF YOU GO
WHAT: Howl at the Moon: Cuisine in the Corn for a Cause
WHEN: 6 to 11 p.m. Sept. 13
WHERE: Siegel's Cottonwood Farm, 17250 Weber Road, Lockport
ETC: Dinner (salad, beef brisket, chicken breast, pulled pork, cheesey potatoes, Mexican corn and s'more stations), live entertainment (Soul Motion and Alex Hoffer), hayrack rides, bonfire. Proceeds benefit organizations that help women and children.
TICKETS: $45 or $405 for 10. Advance reservations preferred.
PURCHASE: At www.jolietjuniors.org; call 815-483-4913; or mail payment to JJWC, P.O. Box 3632, Joliet, IL 60434

KNOW MORE – SWEET CORN
• Sweet corn is best eaten the same day it is picked. Siegel's corn is picked fresh daily in the early morning hours.

• The corn is so fresh and sweet you can eat it raw. Nor does it need toppings.

• Boiling is the most popular way to prepare it. Husk your corn; remove all silks; and bring pot of water to a rapid boil. Do not add salt to the water; it toughens corn. Add corn, cover. Corn is done when it turns bright, about five minutes.

• Grilling is great, too. Leave corn in husks but pull out silks so they don’t catch fire. Place corn on a hot grill for 10 to 15 minutes or so; turn frequently. Pull back husk to use as a handle.

• To microwave, remove husks and silks and then rinse in water. Cover with paper towels or wax paper, or place in a dish with a lid. Cook on high for two to three minutes.

• To make Mexican corn, set out topping: mayonnaise, butter, Parmesan cheese, chili pepper and lime. Or try this flavor combination: butter, garlic salt and salt and pepper.

Source: Sue Siegel, owner of Siegel’s Cottonwood Farms

KNOW MORE – Joliet Junior Woman’s Club

In the spring of 2014, the Joliet Junior Woman’s Club supported the following local charities through fundraising:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will & Grundy Counties
• Building a Global Community
• CASA of Will County
• Easter Seals Joliet Region
• Guardian Angel Community Services
• Joliet Area Community Hospice
• KB Hoops Joliet
• United Cerebral Palsy of Illinois Prairieland
• Vista Learning
• Will County Center for Community Concerns
• Will-Grundy Center for Independent Living
• Will County Children's Advocacy Center
• Will-Grundy Medical Clinic