Elise,

I made the corn bread and the turkey chili tonight. They were both good. The corn bread was more like quiche with cornmeal in it though. Not sure what I did wrong???? I followed the recipe (even cooked it in one of my cast iron skillets, and you're right about it staying warm the whole time). Regardless of it being more like quiche, it was tasy and a perfect partner to the chili. It was best not to think of it as cornbread though, as it wasn't much what one would expect of cornbread.

I've been enjoying your recipes for about a year now. I don't even bother with other recipe sites any more! You always have what I need.

-Tara

Hey Elise, this looks tasty! And I just bought a whole box of cornmeal the other day too. :-)

Is it possible that the self-rising cornmeal recipe should be 1 tsp of baking powder instead of 1 Tbsp? The "Cookwise" book on food chemistry says that if you put too much leavening, all the bubbles get too big and pop, leaving you with flat dough. That jives Tara's quiche-like results. Cookwise also recommends about 1 tsp baking powder per cup of flour but admittedly that's for regular wheat flour, not cornmeal.

By the way, I noticed you're posting more often. Thanks for the frequent eyecandy! :)

Hi Elise,

Is there a vegetarian variant for this recipe? If not, I'll play around until I figure something out, but if there is, I'd love to have it. Thanks!

Hi Elise,

I made the cornmeal the way you directed, as I didn't have self-rising on hand. All I can think is that either the baking powder (Clabber Girl, bought maybe 6 months ago) was too old as you mention, or I should have beaten the eggs BEFORE I added them to the cornmeal. It seemed that the egg was at the bottom of the skillet after it cooked.

Either way, I have e-mailed my mom and asked her to bring some Magic (brand) baking powder from home (British Columbia, Canada) when she and my dad come here to Washington state for our American Thanksgiving. I have a couple of 'gourmet' American friends that say there is no comparison to any American brands and the Magic baking powder they pick up when they go to Canada. I suppose I have just taken "Magic" for granted having used it up until 6 years ago when I came to the US of A.

We'll make the cornbread recipe with Magic and I'll let you know how it turned out!

Keep on Cookin'

-Tara

Hi Phil: Here in New Zealand coarse cornmeal and fine cornmeal are sold both in the baking goods aisle and in the health food aisle of the supermarket. Perhaps you could ask at a health food store which stocks gluten-free products or at an organics store if they know what is called in the UK and where to buy it.

This recipe looks delicious, and I would really like to make it, but I don't own cast iron pans and can't afford to own any any time soon.

Is there a way to make this recipe without the cast iron?

Hi Elise!

This is one fantastic recipe! I made some this evening, having decided I was in the mood for a new recipe - and this is wonderful! It's the first time ever my version has come out looking exactly like the picture! I'm absolutely thrilled! And my mother liked it too. I think this could become quite a family favourite.

And just a note for any other English people about - you can find cornmeal in some of the larger Tesco stores now, and most Asda supermarkets stock it as well - you have to find the aisle with the healthfoods and/or rice etc products.

To everyone wondering if you need cast iron for this recipe, I found that you don't. The first time I made this, I didn't have cast iron, so I bought an aluminum (disposable types) pie dish from the store (I've found those to be great for baking!) and it turned out wonderfully. The cast iron does add something to it, but it's not an absolute neccessity in my opinion.

Tori

Dear Elise;
As a 54 year old female who was born, raised and still resides in the south and cooked biscuits and cornbread at home by the time I was 8, I hate to disapoint you but that is not Southern cornbread.

What we make in the south is simple really. Cornmeal (we used to grind our own) buttermilk, 1tsp. sugar and if you want it more cake like then add an egg.

The only time another ingredient was added was each fall after we butchered the hogs and had cracklins'. That's the only time something other than the three ingredients were put into the meal. We don't call it cornmeal we just call it meal.

One thing which is very important to a really crispy crust is the seasoned iron skillet and lard which you grease the bottom and sides of skillet until its white with the stuff. Yeah, I know..Lards bad for you. But I've cooked with it since I was a child and according to my Dr. I have excellent LDL and HDL. He always laughs and says " I guess those lard and buttermilk biscuits are not going to kill you.

My daughter is a neurologist and says that most illness' are genetic. She also says that the lard is not good for any of us and that we need to eat more healthy.

Being born in the south and raised on a large farm, we worked. Hard. No one was over-weight and no went to the doctor unless it was really really life threatening. We ate 3 cooked meals a day yet only removed the cans we used once a year. We only bought those at Thanksgiving and Xmas. No preservatives and no growth hormones nor additives were ever given to animals or our extremely large gardens. I have a feeling if people tried our lifestyle they would probably be more healthy. I know they would be slimmer.

I was hoping to make cornbread for an event two days from now, but have no cast iron skillet. I'm reading from everyone's comments that while it's not necessary, it makes a crispier tastier crust. There's not enough time to buy and season one, so I'll have to skip it. I never bought one and tossed/gave away the old ones found in the cupboard because they were nasty and rusty. Here's what I don't understand: How do you keep a skillet from rusting or if oiled, from getting rancid, if you only use them a few times a year?

My friend Biggles has a great post on taking care of cast iron pans. It's not hard once they're cured, and it's not hard to cure them. ~Elise

Beware: I think the flour is missing from this recipe as it turned out really yucky. Really not at all what I remember as true southern style and my gramma is from Texas. Too many eggs make this an eggy mess.

As usual Elise, your recipes are FANTASTIC! I made this cornbread last night to serve with a comfort food-style mac 'n cheese, and boy was it a hit! However, I made 4 very minor alterations due to what I had in the kitchen: 1, I used monterey jack cheese instead of cheddar (it was what I had), 2, I ommitted the corn because I was out, 3, I used a muffin pan instead of my cast iron skillet, and 4 I added a cup of sugar. The product was fluffy, delicious, and gone in minutes. Thanks so much for posting such tasty recipes, this is certainly my new favorite cornbread go-to!