A Recipe from My Southern Kitchen....Cornbread

What is the deal with cornbread? Why are people afraid of it? I used to have the same problem, while I love eating cornbread, it just seemed so complicated to make.

Before I learned just how simple it is, I used to buy mixes. Now after learning the secrets to a good cake of cornbread I wouldn't dream of using a mix, it is just too easy to make yourself.

A couple of years ago, while on my summer pilgrimage to God's Country, I finally broke down and asked daddy to show me how to make cornbread.... he did and now I probably eat it more than I should!

One of the most important lessons I learned when making cornbread is, you must have the right pan. As we learned in a previous post, the preferred pan in any good Southern Kitchen is the black iron frying pan, or as we may refer to it in this instance.... a skillet. There is just something magical about those old iron pans that transform food like today's new fangled metallic pans can't.

The first step in making good cornbread is to heat the pan. After spraying your iron skillet with no-stick spray, place it in the oven to heat to 375 degrees.

Cornbread is made with just three ingredients..... yeah, three, how could it be any simpler?



Ingredients

Self Rising Cornmeal
Eggs
Buttermilk

(Some people like to add ingredients to their cornbread and that is all well and good. Peppers, onions, chilies, cracklins, and cheese can all be added to the mix, I just like to keep it simple.)

Mixing the cornbread is where people get confused and it really is just a trial and error kind of thing. In a bowl pour about 1 cup of cornmeal, add one egg and buttermilk. Mix together and you are looking for a "not to wet", "not to dry" consistency to your batter. If you need to add more meal then do so, or buttermilk to take your batter the other way. When adding eggs, I have found that one egg per cup of cornmeal works best.

After you have the right consistency for your cornbread batter, pour it into the hot iron pan. Bake at 375 until golden brown, approximately 30 - 35 minutes.

Serve with butter, crumbled up in a bowl of soup, dripping with syrup, or as daddy likes it in a glass of buttermilk.

Cornbread is an easy accompaniment to any meal!