OLD FASHIONED CORNBREAD SKILLET BREAD MADE IN AN IRON SKILLET

OLD FASHIONED CORNBREAD OR SKILLET BREAD
MADE IN AN IRON SKILLET


Hello Friends,

There continues to be a great debate between many family cooks about Iron Skillets.
Some say they would never give them up, While others say they would never have one. The main reason against using iron skillets, besides the long seasoning process, is the skillet weight. They are extremely heavy and if you are like me and you do not have enough storage room, you have to keep pulling them in and out of the oven when you do your baking.
In my opinion, there are some foods that do not taste the same in a regular skillet or saucepan. One of my favorite foods to make using an iron skillet is fresh fried corn. Shucked, cleaned and sliced right off the ear into a hot skillet, keep it simmering for a while with a little butter and salt or maybe seasoned with a piece or two of bacon...mmmm.

Another food I believe tastes better in an iron skillet,
Cornbread often called Skillet Bread.

There are so many different cornbread recipes to choose from,
there isn't room here to list all of them.

Here are just a few ingredient variations:

Regular corn meal, self rising corn meal or even boxed corn muffin or corn bread mix, sweet milk, 2% milk, buttermilk, soy milk, sour cream, fresh chicken eggs or duck eggs. You can add any of the following: bacon bits, cooked sausage, drained canned corn, creamed corn or fresh corn kernels, bacon drippings, chopped red peppers, green peppers or chile peppers, chopped storage onions, chopped vidalias, shredded cheeses and THE most important ingredient to all who enjoy Southern Cornbread - sugar (or splenda).

Most of us who enjoy cooking naturally find ourselves doing things the way we saw it done when we were children. Usually without even thinking about it. What did your mom use to grease a skillet or pan? Crisco, bacon grease, lard or non-stick spray? Do you like your corn bread baked in a square pan, in a skillet - sliced pie-shaped? Maybe baked in a cupcake pan as corn muffins, a special iron pan for corn sticks or how about fried cornbread, made in a skillet on top of the stove, when fried up they resemble pancakes.
One of My all time favorite ways to eat corn bead is fried and of course I love corn sticks simply because of the way they bake up in those cute little "corn-ear" pans.

As far as bacon drippings go, I don't use them to season every meal or dish. I find if you splurge every once in a while, you don't feel like you are giving up so much when you have to make dietary changes. The best way to stick with healthier cooking is to do a little at a time. Most people who make sudden, drastic changes don't stick with it. I have cut down cooking with a Lot of vegetable oils over the past few years. When I need an oil for frying, I use olive oil. Canola oil is said to be the healthiest, but I find it leaves an aftertaste. I like whipped or creamy butter on my cornbread no matter shape it is or what cooking method was used. If you need to watch your butter intake there are many healthy whipped butters on the market these days.

Whenever I would make corn bread or muffins for my mom she always saved at least one big piece (actually, we called it a hunk, instead of a piece) to crumble up in a glass or bowl and then she would pour cold milk on top of it, chunk it up and eat it with a spoon. She told me once, with a little grin and twinkling eyes, when she was growing up during the depression, it was a 'real treat' to have a hunk of cornbread and milk for dessert.
It always makes me smile when I think of that.
:)

Here is the Iron skillet cornbread I made just the other night.
-at the top right, can you see my vidalia onions sliced and ready to eat







BASIC OLD FASHIONED SOUTHERN
SKILLET BREAD RECIPE

2 Cups of self-rising cornmeal
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
2 Tbls melted bacon drippings
and an additional
2 Tbls melted bacon drippings for cooking

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Grease a 9-inch iron skillet with about 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings
(or some type of oil)
Place skillet in the oven to pre-heat for just a few minutes while
you are mixing up the ingredients.
In a medium bowl:
combine cornmeal, 2 beaten eggs, buttermilk,
and the melted bacon drippings.
Mix well.
Pour your mixture into your pre-heated skillet.
Your batter will sizzle a little so be careful &
make sure you have a heavy duty - thick potholder.

Bake at 450 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Then grab the butter and have yourself a big hunk of cornbread.





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