So I haven't been on a cooking kick lately. That seems to have been a September thing.
But on Sunday I did toss some stuff in the crock pot and produce some mighty fine chili. (Stretched into Frijoli Pies for Monday night.)
So I made some corn bread.
Now, at some point I got all mouse-scared and put the corn meal in a mason jar. And tossed the canister with the recipe on the back. So I went to Betty (Crocker) and tried that one.
I don't know what went wrong. It was bad. Now, I've made DRY corn bread before... the cure is lots of butter and honey. This wasn't dry but it just didn't taste good.
So.
What corn bread recipe do you use?
3 comments:
I think the one I like is the one from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook. It has a lot of sugar in it, like 1/3 cup, and is kind of sweet all on it's own. I can send it to you if you like. The BoyChild could almost eat the whole pan all by himself. If you find the FF Cookbook, I think I reverse the amount of cornmeal and the amount of flour cause I like the taste of cornmeal but it's good the way it's written.
I grew up in the south... and made cornbread as one of my first chores for mama. This recipe is pretty close to my "no recipe" version.
Grease up the iron skillet (preferably bacon grease) put it in a hot oven. You have to be careful not to make the batter too think (or too thick). You look for self-rising cornmeal or add
2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt for each cup of regular meal.
Cornbread Tips:
Sprinkle a little cornmeal in the hot pan before adding the batter. It will brown and add a crispier texture.
For a crusty cornbread, make sure there is a good "layer" of oil or shortening in the pan.
(A tablespoon of mayonnaise can be substituted for the egg.)
You can use all cornmeal, or lessen the amount of flour in the recipe.
Use muffin or cornstick pans (preferably iron), to vary the shape.
Instead of baking, fry the batter like pancakes.
Cornbread
2 to 4 tablespoons shortening (or bacon drippings)
1 1/2 cups white self-rising cornmeal*
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk, or sweet milk
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda if using buttermilk
water
Preheat the oven to 425°.
Put the shortening in a cast-iron skillet and place on medium heat or in the oven. Combine the cornmeal and flour, then mix in the egg and milk. Add water slowly, until the mixture is pourable (like thick pancake batter). Take the hot pan from the oven, pour some of the melted shortening (a tablespoon or more) into the batter, then pour the batter into the hot pan. Place back in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the outer crust is golden brown.
My quick fix is test by pressing finger in center if it indents without coming back up it's not done. And if it's all cooked up but pasty, put it under the broiler for a few minutes.
MMMmmm.... in the evening it's slice in pie shaped pieces (round skillet) then slice in half and add butter. In the morning, you add honey instead...
http://recipecircus.com/recipes/boozeinc/BREAD/REAL_SOUTHERN_CORNBREAD.html
Oh... and I use sweet (whole) milk (not buttermilk, which is for biscuits - a whole 'nuther recipe.)
Post a Comment