Sunday, April 1, 2012

Corn bread

I bought some corn bread pans in the shape of ears of corn many years ago in New York, and though I do not use them too often I have to say corn bread made in these does look very pretty.


Since we were going to a Texas themed pot luck I thought that these would be appropriate to take along with my salad.  If you are not lucky enough to own corn shaped tins, regular muffin tins would work well.  Or you can use a cast iron frying which is what the original recipe suggests.

I got this recipe from one of my all time favourite cook books by Jon Hadamuscin "Special Occasions" and other than I usually do not cook it in a cast iron frying pan, I follow the recipe exactly! This quantity makes 1 10" cast iron frying pan or about a dozen muffins.

3/4 cup of flour
2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 1/4 cups of ground yellow corn meal
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh sage
1 large egg beaten
1 cup of milk
3 tablespoons of melted bacon fat or butter
1/2 cup of grated cheese (I used white cheddar)

Pre heat the oven to to 425 generously grease either a 10 inch cast iron frying pan or corn pone pans or heavy duty muffin tins.




Place the greased pan/s in the oven to preheat.

Meanwhile in a large mixing bowl combine all the dry ingredients and in another one whisk the egg, milk and melted fat.  Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir to just mix, do not over mix, the batter should be a little lumpy.


Pull the now hot pan/s out of the oven and spoon the mixture in to them.



Return to the oven. These corn pones took about 15 minutes, I would think muffins would be about the same, but a cast iron skillet takes about 25 minutes.  The batter should be cooked through and surface nicely browned.


If you leave them in the pan for a couple of minutes they should then just slip out. It is important that the container is hot when you place them in and it is either well seasoned or well greased.

Place on a rack to cool.


These are best served fresh and a wonderful accompaniment with a southwest themed meal or soup. They have a great crunchy texture and, as are most things, improved with a little butter.




2 comments:

  1. These look excellent! I love your corn shaped corn bread molds!

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  2. That's a corn pone pan, and the cakes that come out of it are called corn pones! A favorite family tradition. <3

    Carry on!

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