Buttermilk Cornbread

Having grown up in the farmland of the Central Valley in California and now living in Eastern Washington State, I cannot truly call myself a "Southerner".  However, my mother grew up in Kelsey, Texas, and her mother grew up in Happy Valley, Tennessee (near present day Maryville, just outside of Knoxville).  So I claim the privilege of being a Southerner by birthright.  

Growing up without much and having to make do with what they had or could grow, both mom and grandma often cooked such staples as cornbread, biscuits, beans with ham hocks, mustard greens, and black-eyed peas.  I remember grandma always had a bottle of Tabasco Peppers in vinegar with a shaker top in the refrigerator.  I never saw anybody eat any of the peppers, but the vinegar was used as a seasoning to sprinkle on the greens.  I don't recall her ever buying a new bottle, just refilling the vinegar in the bottle as it was depleted.  And there was always buttermilk in the refrigerator, for cooking and for drinking, and to this day I love a cold glass of buttermilk!

I have fond memories of the food that mom and grandma used to make, though I don't think I ever really appreciated it too much when I was young. Some was fantastic as is, and other things I have had to adapt to my tastes.  This is true with cornbread.  While I have always liked mom's cornbread, I didn't always like how dry and crumbly it was.  So I took it upon myself to adapt her recipe just a little to make it a little more moist.  I added eggs (which she NEVER did) and more butter and buttermilk, and just a tablespoon of sugar.  The results were fantastic.

Of course the key to a good southern cornbread is to preheat a cast iron skillet with the fat in it in the oven while it is preheating. It actually takes longer for the oven to get to 450⁰F than it does to make the cornbread batter.  The cube of butter is nicely melted by the time the oven is ready.  Just swish the butter around the skillet before dumping it into the batter and your skillet is ready.  Lightly mix the butter into the batter then dump it straight back into the skillet.  It should sizzle because the pan is so hot.  Remember use oven mitts as the pan is screamin' hot!  The batter going into the hot fat in the pan makes that wonderful, brown, crispy crust that a good southern cornbread needs.  Of course, if you don't have cast iron (you really should invest in it as it is not expensive) you can use a regular baking dish (glass or metal) and get a good result.  It just won't have that nice crispy exterior that cast iron gives.

½ cup butter

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1½ cups buttermilk

2 eggs, beaten

Preheat oven to 450⁰F.  Place butter in 10” cast iron skillet and place in oven while it is heating to melt.

In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.  Mix well.

Add buttermilk and eggs and stir just until combined.  Add butter and stir until just combined.

Add batter to hot skillet.  It should be sizzling with the hot butter. 

Bake at 450⁰ for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top. 

Let cool for a couple of minutes before turning out onto a plate.