cornbread
Summary
| Yield | |
|---|---|
| Source | various |
| Prep Time | 45 minutes |
| Kind of Dish | bread |
| Dietary Info | vegetarian |
| Tags | corn cornmeal southern |
Description
This is southern style, meaning not sweet.
Ingredients
- 2 1⁄2 c cornmeal
- 2 t baking powder
- 1 t baking soda
- 1 t salt
- 1 1⁄2 c Buttermilk
- 2 eggs
- 4 T unsalted butter
- 1 iron skillet
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425F (215C) and put iron skillet on lower rack.
In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients and set aside. In a smaller bowl, beat the eggs some and then add the buttermilk.
Take the skillet out after 10 minutes or so. Put the butter (or fat) in the skillet and let it melt, and swirl it all around the sides and bottom. Don't worry if it burns or goes brown.
Pour the butter into the buttermilk and egg mixture and - after putting the skillet back in the oven to stay hot - mix til the butter's blended in.
Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until it's consistent. It might be a little lumpy. Remove the skillet from the oven, pour in the batter and return to the oven. Bake 20-25 minutes until golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Notes
- You can substitute bacon fat for butter.
- The above measurements are US cups. Britishers you will need to use about one imperial pint glass full of cornmeal.
- You can make buttermilk by adding a couple tablespoons of lemon juice to normal milk and letting sit for at least 15 minutes.
- The coarser the cornmeal the better. Stoneground is ideal.
- The reason an iron skillet is called for is that it gets very hot in the oven. That heat is what creates a nice, thick brown crust on your cornbread. You can use something else, but the crust won't be as good. This recipe will work in a larger iron skillet, but because the bread will be shallower it may cook faster so just check on it.
- You can eat this with yet even more butter, and/or molasses (or honey), depending on how you like it.
