Monday, October 20, 2008

Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

Nothing goes better with Chili then a little cornbread. Especially when said cornbread is sweet buttermilk cornbread, hot out of the oven, slathered with butter and drizzled with honey, with a crispy outside from a hot cast iron skillet. Is your mouth watering yet? I'm going to share my cornbread secrets with you, and I've been told many a time that my cornbread is the best!

Cornbread Drizzled with Honey

Secret #1: Buttermilk
Secret #2: Honey
Secret #3: Hot Skillet

Don't have buttermilk? I keep a buttermilk powder on hand for baking when you want the buttermilk flavor, without added liquid. However, you can use it to substitute in a pinch.

Now, this week I got to up the secret factor, because I got to use some AMAZING honey, and I don't know if I'd ever be able to live up to it with any old honey again. I got my honey from Haff Apiaries (701.663.1619‎) in Mandan, North Dakota, it's raw unpasteurized honey and the best I've ever tasted. I also used White Lily White Buttermilk Cornmeal Mix, this is hard to find up here in North Dakota, so I order it online. While I do think it makes a better cornbread, you can use whatever corn meal you have.

Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

INGREDIENTS
2 cups White Lily White Buttermilk Cornmeal Mix
-OR-
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour

1 1/2 cup buttermilk
-OR-
1 1/2 cup milk
2 Tbsp buttermilk powder

1 egg, lightly beaten
4 tsp honey
1/4 cup vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS
Generously grease 8-10" cast iron skillet (I use butter flavored shortening for this, butter just doesn't do as good a job)
Preheat skillet in oven to 425
Measure cornmeal (and flour, if needed) into a bowl and stir (with a wooden spoon) it up to break up large clumps
Add remaining ingredients and mix until just moist, it will have some clumps
Pour into skillet and put in oven for 20 - 30 minutes (depends on the skillet size, start checking on it at 20 minutes. You want the top to get to a nice deep golden color.

Submitted to Need To Knead

8 comments:

threesidesofcrazy said...

Yes, my mouth is watering and I'm not even hungry! Sounds great! Thanks for participating and making the Need to Knead well rounded with this wonderful corn bread recipe.

Kiy said...

It looks great, but no cast iron skillet (yes, I know, amazing isn't it?). But with all the moving we have done some things have been misplaced. For all I know my skillet is still in a box somewhere, but I haven't seen it since Virginia! Any suggestions for something to use instead? I'd love to try this but a new (good) cast iron anything just isn't in the budget right now.

Cheers, Kiy

Barbara said...

Tamy... I love a good cornbread, I hope you like this...

Kiy: You can use a cake round, you just won't get quite as crispy a crust.

Barbara said...

Kiy: Or any oven safe skillet.

brooklynite said...

similar to a recipe i've used for years. i'm on the salty, not sweet, cornbread faction, so i only use 1 T honey and 1 to 1-1/2 tsp. salt. i also use baking soda (1-1/2 tsp). i sometimes give it a soutthwestern kick with a little ground cumin and cayenne; or some chopped chives when they are overabundant in my garden (as they are now); or all of the above.

Jamie said...

I am so glad you posted this and that I found it. I've made it four or five times this week. I am from that little town that makes Lodge cast iron. My Gramma passed many years ago, I couldn't even pick up her cast iron skillet, though I did inherit it. I do remember vividly the cornbread she would make me.

This is it. This is it many times over. I knew as soon as saw the ingredients (she would never use anything except white lily). I just want to say thank you, without this recipe I think it would be lost for me and the family I have now created.

Barbara said...

Jamie: You're welcome. I really wish I could remember where this recipe came from... The ingredients are so simple that I've been making it for almost 15 years from a scribbled piece of paper. I would guess a White Lily Cornmeal mix bag, but the recipe on my bag is different.

I do think the White Lily makes the best cornbread, there aren't many food items I order online.

Becca said...

I wonder how it would turn out in stoneware... :) Isn't it awesome how simple cornbread is to make, but it's just the best-tasting stuff ever? Love it with real butter and good honey. Going to have to look into White Lily!