I’m heading out to the real OC in a little bit, to help Ms. Lea do some post-moving cleaning. I thought, since the house is pretty much empty, and because we’ll want something to eat, I’d make something to take with me. A crock pot of 15 bean soup and some cornbread seemed like an excellent idea. The cornbread turned out most excellently, so I thought I’d share my recipe. It’s tender, with a crispy crust, and a nutty, savory flavor. (I really don’t like sweet cornbread.)
- 1 1/4 C flour
- 3/4 C yellow corn meal
- 1 tbls sugar
- 4 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 2/3 C milk
- 1/3 C melted butter or vegetable oil
Preheat the oven to 425F. Lightly coat an iron skillet with oil and place in the oven while it’s preheating. The preheated skillet is secret to the crispy crust.
Mix the dry ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl. In a separate container (I use a Pyrex measuring cup), mix the wet ingredients. If you measure out the oil and milk, then add the egg, you will not need to dirty another measuring cup. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix thoroughly. By this time, the oven and the skillet should be hot. Remove the skillet from the oven. Pour the batter into the skillet. The batter should sizzle when it hits the hot pan. Return the skillet to the oven, and bake for 25-30 minutes.
When it’s done, the edges should be slightly brown and be pulled away from the pan. You can also test it with a fork.
You can add things like corn (drained canned corn works fine), parsley, garlic, onion, cheese, and chilies to the batter, but I like it best plain.
red paper boat 