Here’s another one of those dishes that’s sure to raise a ruckus on the wherefore’s, thou shalt’s, and everybody’s grandmother/grandfather/momma/daddy’s special recipe was to-die-for. On that I believe we can all agree. Another thing I think we can all agree on is there are two basic kinds of cornbread here in America: Yankee and Southern. To my tastebuds the only difference between the two is that Yankee cornbread seems to use more flour and sugar than Southern cornbread does. So before we get into all kinds of regional mud-slingin’, let’s get to cookin’ up a mess of cornbread, Southern Style!
Thanksgiving is almost here, and folks will be coming over to the house pretty soon, and they’ll be H-O-N-G-R-Y! What you’ll need more than anything else to appease the famished masses is some good ol’ down home cornbread, and for that you’ll need:
- A Skillet!
- 1/4 cup of shortening, or better yet…bacon fat for that “true to the old days” flavor
- 1 1/2 cups of yellow cornmeal
- 3 Tbsp of regular flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- a peeeeench of sugar
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1 egg
First heat the bacon fat or shortening in the skillet on the stove, then pre-heat the oven to 425. While everything is heating up and smelling great, mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Once the bacon fat or shortening has liquified, gently slosh it around the skillet to coat the majority of the cooking surface of the skillet, then pour the rest of the fat into the dry mixture and stir. Add in the egg (beat it lightly first) and pour in some buttermilk, you may not use all of it…what we’re looking for is a thick mixture, but pourable. Make sure you fold the mixture over and over instead of actively stirring when you add in the buttermilk. Once you have the mixture to a thick but pourable consistency, pour it into the skillet, and put the skillet into the over for 20-25 minutes or until a knife stuck into the center of the cornbread comes back clean. Once the cornbread is finished, let it rest in the skillet for 5 or so minutes, then turn it out onto a plate and enjoy!
Before you hit the road this Thanksgiving holiday season, be sure and hit our website for all your RV parts and accessories!