56 replies to this topic

[tejon]

I live in the same general area as Andie so all the same laws apply here as well, sadly .

[Catherine Iino]

Andie,

May I bump this thread to ask you a couple of questions: I am just making your cornbread--it's in the oven now--and I ended up added quite a bit more buttermilk than you called for to get the texture to resemble yours. Do you think this might be because I didn't grind my own corn (I did mine my own baking soda) (just kidding), and so the cornmeal may be drier than yours? I am using Jonnycake meal, so another possibility is that that kind of corn is drier than yours. Just wondering if you have any thoughts.

A more crucial question: we won't be able to eat the cornbread for a couple of hours after it comes out of the oven. Do you think I should take it out of the pan or leave it in? Sometimes things go a little funky in cast iron.

Thank you for the great demo. We will be eating the cornbread with chile this evening.

[fifi]

I'm not andie but my recipe is almost exactly like hers. I do notice a bit of difference in "pourability" depending upon the cornmeal I happen to be using at the time. But, I can say that it almost always looks about like andie's. I just follow the recipe and pour it in the skillet. It comes out good every time.

Yes . . . I take mine out of the skillet if I am not serving it right away. Well, I do let it cool a bit so it is easier to handle.

[Catherine Iino]

Thank you, fifi, for that really quick reply. Now I know what to do when the bread comes out in about 7 minutes.

[andiesenji]

Freshly ground corn meal has a higher moisture content and your cornmeal probably absorbed more of the liquid.
The batter should be pourable but not runny. I am sure yours will turn out just fine.

As fifi said, do removed it from the skillet as soon as possible. Put it on a cooling rack so the crust will remain crisp.

[Catherine Iino]

It did come out just fine, thanks. By the way, since it was cool by the time I served it, I did it up my favorite way: cut wedges, sliced the wedges in half horizontally, buttered the non-crust sides lightly, and grilled them on a griddle until they were lightly browned and crisp. Extra crust, mmmm.

[andiesenji]

Sounds terrific. I love the crust. Sometimes I make it thinner and when it is 3/4 done, place a second skillet (which has been heating in the oven) on top of it.
I began doing this after I dropped on on the floor when trying to flip it over.

[Nathan P.]

Nice recipe and demo, andiesenji. I've always made a northern sweeter style of cornbread but since I was doing BBQ for the superbowl I decided to give this a go. Alright, my yankee soul wimped out a bit and I added 1 tbsp of flour and a bit less than 1 tbsp of sugar. I was impressed enough that the next time I promise to leave out all those offending ingredients! The nice brown rendered taqueria lard I used did not hurt either.

[andiesenji]

Beautiful corn bread. In my opinion the corn flavor comes through better when there is no sugar added. However, I also believe that every person should prepare cornbread the exact way they like it. There is really not one "right" way, there are many ways that are right, depending on the consumer. Make your cornbread your way and enjoy!

[racheld]

Cornbread


Andie

[Marlene]

Andie, I'd like to make your cornbread recipe to use for a cornbread and sausage stuffing. The last time I tried cornbread stuffing, I failed miserably. Should I make this tonight and let it dry out, or make it tomorrow and just let it cool and proceed from there?

Edit to clarify timeframe.

Edited by Marlene, 07 October 2006 - 05:17 PM.

[andiesenji]

Make it in the morning. No need to dry it. It is dense and not all that moist to begin with.

I often have it baking when I begin frying onions and cooking the giblets, if I am going to use them.
As soon as it comes out of the oven I turn it out onto the butcher block and chop it into chunks with a long knife (or a big 2-handled pizza cutter) and let it cool as much as it will until it is ready to add to the other ingredients.

[Marlene]

Excellent. Thanks Andie. I'll let you know if I fare any better this time!

[andiesenji]

I'm bumping this topic up because I had a request for my cornbread recipe - which seems to be difficult to find in RecipeGullet - it took me several searches with the "advanced" feature to get to it.
GRAMMAW'S BLACK-SKILLET CORNBREAD
And then I had a difficult time finding this topic as it does not show in the list of "my" topics - I guess it is too old or the link was purged.

Anyway, I have been experimenting with some alternate corn varieties - red and purple from Barry Farm,
some blue that was sent to me by a friend in New Mexico and some cream and lavender that I found at a local Philippine market.
I had purchased the fresh type in the past but had never before seen it dried.
It had the same appearance as other flint corns and when ground had a bit more moisture - in that it clumped when pinched. I used a bit less liquid in the recipe.

I'm very pleased that some people are continuing to grow and sell heirloom varieties that have different properties from the standard stuff now generally available.

The flavors of all these corns, when baked into cornbread, have a more intense "corny" flavor, to my taste anyway.

I've tried the blue cornmeal that is sold commercially and find it has a bitter aftertaste which is lacking in the cornmeal I ground myself. I don't know if that is because of the processing, the time spent on the shelf after grinding or ???.
There is, however, a difference that is quite noticeable both to me and to the folks who sampled my "experiments."

Has anyone else done anything with any of these products, or similar ones or know of a source for other types of heirloom corns?

Inquisitive person here!

[janeer]

In Rhode Island we use stone-ground RI white cap flint cornmeal from Gray's, Carpenter's[/url], or Kenyon's. Here is a little background on this true heirloom variety, also called Indian Meal by Rhode Islanders. RI white flint corn has a natural bitter edge that is prized.

[SouzaKH]

What a wonderful post on cornbread. It is perhaps the centerpiece of Southern cooking, well, next to biscuits. I have never been able to recreate my grandmother or mother's biscuits, but I am proud of my cornbread. I have varied my recipe from yours a bit. Your's is exactly like that of my heritage, but are are my modifications:

• I replace 1/2 cup of cornmeal with flour
• I add one tablespoon of sugar

I cannot stand sweet cornbread, but the tablespoon of sugar does not come through as sweet as much as it serves to round out the flavors of the corn. I never encountered sweet cornbread until I was in college pulled a piece off of a cafeteria line and was met with the shock of my life when I tasted the dessert-like concoction.

Best bedtime snack ever - leftover cornbread crumbled into a glass with buttermilk pour to cover. Dig in with a spoon.

[Jaymes]

I cannot stand sweet cornbread, but the tablespoon of sugar does not come through as sweet as much as it serves to round out the flavors of the corn. I never encountered sweet cornbread until I was in college pulled a piece off of a cafeteria line and was met with the shock of my life when I tasted the dessert-like concoction.

Best bedtime snack ever - leftover cornbread crumbled into a glass with buttermilk pour to cover. Dig in with a spoon.

Yes, best bedtime snack ever from the "old south" for sure.

Back when you could actually get real buttermilk with the little yellow flakes in it, this was a favorite family evening treat. You'd make sure that buttermilk was ice cold before you poured it into the tall glass of crumbled cornbread. Take your iced-tea spoon and head out to the front porch to sit a spell and watch the barefoot kiddos playing "Mother May I" and "Red Light Green Light" in the gathering dusk on the front lawn while the lightening bugs danced around them.

And how about "Cornbread Cereal"? Did you ever have that? Just crumble your left-over cornbread into a bowl. Pour a little whole milk or half & half over, then maybe a little sugar or molasses. Or some Georgia peaches. Best cereal ever.

How about Cornbread Salad? I still make this all the time to take to potlucks. Never fails to surprise and please.

I love Cornbread Salad.

And you know, that sweet cake-like cornbread just doesn't work well for any of these applications. You need a sturdy, dry cornbread to hold up to the additions.

I'm not saying I don't like sweet cornbread ever. I think it's a pretty good dessert with butter and honey or maple syrup. And it's an okay side dish with a really spicy main like a bowl of chili.

But not for sopping up the pot likker from a mess o' greens, or beans, or black-eyed peas and ham-hocks.

When it comes to the traditional supporting role that cornbread plays on southern tables, that sweet fluffy cornbread doesn't cut it.

It may be tasty, but it just doesn't play well with others.

Edited by Jaymes, 03 December 2011 - 07:07 PM.

[MSRadell]

What's with all of this white cornmeal these days? It used to be very easy to find yellow cornmeal but now days it's very difficult to find it when you do find it it's normally self rising. I don't know what anybody else but I certainly prefer my corn bread to be a nice yellow and want to add my own rising ingredients. I certainly do agree with the 1 tablespoon of sugar and I also like a little regular flour in the mix.

[toolprincess]

My aunt makes an awesome cornbread but she takes the batter and fries it into little cakes instead of the skillet kind. Very very tasty with stew (especially brunswick).

[RWood]

My aunt makes an awesome cornbread but she takes the batter and fries it into little cakes instead of the skillet kind. Very very tasty with stew (especially brunswick).

We always called it "fried cornbread". It was a faster way than waiting for a whole pan to bake. Haven't had it in years. Oh, but to have some Brunswick Stew though :). Don't get that in California.

[Jaymes]

My aunt makes an awesome cornbread but she takes the batter and fries it into little cakes instead of the skillet kind. Very very tasty with stew (especially brunswick).

We always called it "fried cornbread". It was a faster way than waiting for a whole pan to bake. Haven't had it in years. Oh, but to have some Brunswick Stew though :). Don't get that in California.

And if they were flat, we called them hoecakes. Fat little ovals, deep-fried, hushpuppies.

And then we get into corn mush. Fried mush was one of my father's favorite breakfasts.

That's something you don't see very often anymore.

[toolprincess]

My aunt makes an awesome cornbread but she takes the batter and fries it into little cakes instead of the skillet kind. Very very tasty with stew (especially brunswick).

We always called it "fried cornbread". It was a faster way than waiting for a whole pan to bake. Haven't had it in years. Oh, but to have some Brunswick Stew though :). Don't get that in California.

And if they were flat, we called them hoecakes. Fat little ovals, deep-fried, hushpuppies.

And then we get into corn mush. Fried mush was one of my father's favorite breakfasts.

That's something you don't see very often anymore.

Didn't Shelby make fried mush in her awesome blog? I need to try that.

[Shelby]

My aunt makes an awesome cornbread but she takes the batter and fries it into little cakes instead of the skillet kind. Very very tasty with stew (especially brunswick).

We always called it "fried cornbread". It was a faster way than waiting for a whole pan to bake. Haven't had it in years. Oh, but to have some Brunswick Stew though :). Don't get that in California.

And if they were flat, we called them hoecakes. Fat little ovals, deep-fried, hushpuppies.

And then we get into corn mush. Fried mush was one of my father's favorite breakfasts.

That's something you don't see very often anymore.

Didn't Shelby make fried mush in her awesome blog? I need to try that.

Thanks for remembering!!! I LOVE fried mush. Makes me want to get up and make a batch right now...smothered in butter and syrup ****drool***

[andiesenji]

Shelby, I think you have mentioned this in the past...

If you click here and scroll down to post # 316, you will see my pictorial essay on how I do fried mush or grits.

My grandmother's cook used to pour the cooked mush or grits into the large tomato and orange juice cans so that when they were unmolded and sliced one got good-sized rounds that were perfect for topping with a fried egg.
I keep meaning to try this as I have some of the tall coffee cans that are almost the same size but never seem to think of it when I am cooking the stuff.

[tikidoc]

Mmm, fried mush. My mom used to make that for me when I was a kid. I don't really like sweet stuff in the morning, so I usually just ate it as is - fried in a little salted butter.

I very much identify with your comments about liking to be able to make stuff from scratch even when you don't have to. We have a few goats and cows (none milking at the moment, unfortunately) and sometimes make our own butter and cheese. We buy most of the butter that we use but it is nice to make occasionally, and goat butter is a real treat. I have a hand churn, but usually just use the food processor to make butter. Much easier since my stupid horse tripped when I was riding him, and I broke one wrist and separated the opposite shoulder this spring. The food processor does a good job, and it takes only 10 minutes or so.

I'm looking forward to trying your cornbread recipe. I have not tried corn in my grain mill (I have an old Whisper Mill, which is not as adjustable as your NutriMill) but I'd like to give it a try.

[Kerry Beal]

Found myself staying in a B&B for the last week - with minimal access to decent pots, pans, baking stuff...

There was however a nice little well seasoned cast iron skillet - so one of the first things I bought at the store was some cornmeal - then found this thread the the link to andi's 'GRAMMAW'S BLACK-SKILLET CORNBREAD'. I had found some half decent bacon ends so had a nice little pot of bacon grease to work with. There was no buttermilk at the store however a sub of plain yogurt with some milk to get the same texture worked a treat. I had some 8 year old cheddar that I sprinkled on the top. Over all a great success.




Exited the skillet with minimal trauma.

[andiesenji]

Looks great to me Kerry.