This week we were given a special challenge for One Good Loaf (Molly put together this new site for us, isn’t it fantastic?) by our fearless leader, Molly Irwin.
The challenge was to try something new with your baking that you haven’t done before. As I mulled over the challenge I had many ideas for what I could do, and changed my mind half a million times. Finally the other night I was making a stuffed squash for dinner and had the thought that corn bread would be the perfect accompaniment. Then I realized that I had never made corn bread from scratch before. Yes, pathetic, but true. “Hello, my name is Fuji Mama and I have always made corn bread from a box mix.” Until now. I went to my trusty source, the Internet, and after looking at a bunch of recipes, finally settled on a promising looking one from All Recipes.
The batter mixed up quickly and tasted wonderful. (Am I the only one who loves batter and dough? Bad, I know.) I popped it into the oven and 25 minutes later it came out a perfectly even golden yellow color. Waiting for the bread to cool slightly was the hardest part of this recipe, but when we were finally able to cut into it we were rewarded with a wonderful treat. The crumb on this bread was nice and light, slightly coarse, but still moist. The bread was slightly sweet, but not too sweet, and was heavenly with a bit of butter and honey spread on it. The next morning I had it for breakfast and liked it even more. The bread had become a bit more dense and rich “with age” and I had a hard time limiting myself to a reasonable serving size.
I have now made corn bread from scratch. Verdict? I am never making corn bread from a box again if I can help it.
Corn Bread
From All Recipes Makes 16 servings
2/3 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 2/3 c. milk
2 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. cornmeal
4 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Combine the eggs and milk together in a second bowl. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in third bowl; add to butter and sugar mixture alternately with egg mixture.
3. Pour into a greased 13×9-inch baking dish. Bake for 22-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out relatively clean. Cut into squares; serve warm.
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Welcome to the fold, Mama! Once you have homemade cornbread you just can’t go back to mixes. At least I can’t… ;)
I love the photo with the honey drizzling down. The cornbread look great!
Cornbread is always best homemade :] Lovely photos!
LOVE the picture of honey drizzling onto your yummy cornbread. Yum. Who can resist that?
Yum. I love cornbread. Especially with honey.
I love homemade cornbread leftover for breakfast the next day: I split it open, spread it with butter, toast it until the top gets brown and crispy, then have it with peanut butter! The saltiness and creaminess of the sugar-free all-natural peanut butter that I eat goes SO well with the graininess of the cornbread for some reason.
Ohhh you are in sooo much corn founded trouble Fuj. I am going to type up and send you my corn bread recipe tomorrow. Its it’s own course in my house. I basically serve it with chili (chili being the side dish). It’s yummers. I am excited for you. Cornbread is the best stuff ever.
P.S. I also love making sopa paraguaya, which is corn bread with cheese and sauteed onions in it! Yum!
I haven’t had cornbread in years. Yum. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Mmmmm – I’m having warm homemade cornbread and creamery butter for breakfast as I read this. Gets my vote naturally!
Looks like a good recipe- nice ratio of cornmeal to flour. For some reason I have made cornbread twices this month and have had a hard time with the ratios in my recipes. One only had 3 tablespoons of cornmeal (it made a yummy cake, but not bread) and the other had more meal than flour (which was just to coarse). The second time I cooked it in my corn pone pan, which is always fun.
I’ve never even had cornbread! But I can imagine the version made from scratch is much much better than a mix from a box. Oh, and batter and dough are the best bits of baking!
Yum! I stopped by from Lolly’s place and I have been craving really good corn bread all day.. what a day to stop by. now I want it worse!
I’ve made a few recipes of cornbread, but have never tasted one that I absolutely love. I will have this one to try next! I still need to make those ribs from your earlier post… –And yes, I LOVE all batter and mixes, John thinks I’m so weird, but I tell him I’m actually quite normal (at least in that sense!)!
What if I want the cornbread to be less sweet? What would happen to the consistency of the batter if I reduce the amount of sugar?
I googled for a homemade cornbread recipe and came across this. it was delicious!! wonderful recipe.