How You Like It (Part 1)

Sage left a comment on my last post about bad cats and cornbread asking if I could post a recipe; she'd never had it.

Of course I could, but first I needed to figure out which recipe to use. There are two basic types of cornbread--Northern and Southern, and a few differences between the styles:

• SWEETNESS-Southern cornbread uses very little sugar, but Northern cornbread uses a significant amount.
• TEXTURE-Southern cornbread is contains more cornmeal and very little flour, while Northern cornbread typically uses equal amounts of flour and cornmeal.
• BAKING VESSEL-Southern cornbread is traditionally baked in a sizzling hot cast-iron skillet or corn stick pan; in the North, they generally bake cornbread in a baking dish.

Most people have a definite preference for one type or the other.  I like my cornbread Southern style--dense, savory, and kind of gritty from the cornmeal.  My go-to recipe is from a tattered and stained copy of Betty Crocker's Cookbook (New and Revised Edition) that I received for a wedding present more than 30 years ago.  How times have changed- the recipe suggests using bacon fat as an option! Shortening works just as well, and I'm sure it's healthier.

CORN BREAD
1 1/2 cups cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup shortening or bacon fat
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs

Heat oven to 450°F. Mix all ingredients; beat vigorously 30 seconds. Pour batter into greased round layer pan, 9x1½ inches, or square pan, 8x8x2 inches. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve warm.

Note-To cook it in a cast iron skillet, put the shortening in a cold pan. Put pan in the preheating oven while you prepare the rest of the batter. When oven is hot and the grease is melted carefully pour it into the batter and mix well. Pour batter back into pan and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Tomorrow I'll post an easy recipe for Northern-style cornbread

Five years ago today: New Thing #19--Blogging for Beginners