Easy Homemade Cornbread !
I was never a fan of cornbread until this recipe. After lots of recipe testing, I found the perfect ratio of ingredients for soft, moist, and buttery cornbread with crisp-crunchy edges.
Ingrédients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted (or bacon drippings)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon sugar (optional)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder (optional: yields a fluffier cornbread)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cup buttermilk shake before measuring
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C | 400F and position a rack in the middle. Lightly grease a 9-inch cast iron skillet or 9-inch square baking dish with butter and place skillet/dish into the oven to heat up. (Alternatively for cast iron skillets: heat 1/2 cup of unmelted butter in your cast iron over stove top on medium heat until melted, turn heat off then allow the butter to cool slightly before adding to the batter.)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder (If using), baking soda and salt.
- Make a well in the centre and add the buttermilk and eggs. Mix together well to combine, then add in the slightly cooled melted butter. Mix again until 'just' combined (don't over mix).
- Carefully remove your 'hot' pan or dish from the oven with oven mitts, and pour the batter into the hot skillet or dish. Listen to that sizzle! That's what you want.
- Bake until the cornbread begins to brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean (about 20-23 minutes). Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Ground cornmeal is available in different grinds, from fairly fine to very coarse. A finer grind is good for baking a cake-like bread, while coarser grinds (like for grits or polenta that are often cooked into a spoonable hot cereal) can offer more texture and bite to cornbread. Consider using a mixture of fine and coarse meals for a crumblier, more bread-like product.
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If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own! Add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar (or fresh squeezed lemon juice) to 1 cup of room temperature milk (full cream, 2% or skim can be use). Mix together and let sit for 5 minutes. Done! Prepare your 'buttermilk' as step one of this recipe to ensure it has soured enough before adding to your mixture.
- Not all cornmeal is yellow; switch things up with a white or New Mexican blue cornmeal.
- Mix a spoonful of clover honey or grated orange peel into softened butter to slather on the warm bread.
- Bake the batter in a round or square baking pan or try a small cast-iron skillet, muffin tin, or in a heavy corn stick pan. Like for all quick breads, just grease the bottom of the pan or muffin cups so the bread can climb up the sides easily as it rises. For a corn stick pan completely grease the grooves so the sticks slide out without sticking.