Skillet Cornbread

As a Northern girl who grew up on boxed sweet, cakey cornbread, the discovery of Southern cornbread was a revelation. Coarse and substantial, the color of whole grain mustard, and not the least bit sweet, this bread is meant to be eaten in large wedges with a side of comfort food.

Which works out well, because Summer takes leave of us in mere days, replaced by Autumn and its promise of hot soups, thick stews and tall pies.

Hello, Autumn, come give SoupAddict a big ole hug.

Part of the intrigue of this recipe, courtesy of the Lee Brothers, are the nuances of deliciousness it produces. The buttered skillet goes into the hot, hot oven while you prepare the batter, and what comes out is a big pool of brown butter. Brown butter, people. Cornbread baked in brown butter. Can you dig it? Oh, yeah.

Ever notice how buttermilk always makes bread amazing? Buttermilk and brown butter. There’s no way this recipe could lose.

And you know what else? It’s fabulously fun to make. One bowl, one whisk, stir and pour. And that’s all, she wrote.

Oh, and one oven mitt. Seriously, be careful with the hot pan. Have you ever burned your hand on a oven-scorched pan handle? No? Excellent. Because you don’t ever wanna. Ever, ever, ever. Trust SoupAddict on this one.

Skillet Cornbread

adapted from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-be Southerners

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake time: 15 minutes

Yield: 6 generous wedge slices

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups stone-ground cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups whole or lowfat buttermilk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 450°F. Grease a 12-inch cast iron skillet with 1 tablespoon butter and place the pan in the oven.

Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk the egg in a smaller bowl until well-beaten and slightly frothy, then beat in the buttermilk. Stir the egg mixture into the dry ingredients. Then whisk in the melted butter.

Carefully remove the skillet from the oven (it will be hot!). The butter will be melted and starting to smoke. Pour the batter in — it will sizzle and begin bubbling. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 15 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to set for a few minutes before slicing into wedges.

Cara

Thursday 22nd of September 2011

I have never tried to skillet my cornbread but now, from the looks of it, I think I must try this! It sounds (and looks) super good! AND it sounds ridiculously easy to make. Now we are talking :)

Phyllis

From one Northern girl to another, if you love real corn bread you have got to try the Spicy Spoon Bread recipe at King Arthur Flour. Moving South brought whole new appreciation for corn meal and the wonderful items that it can make. This looks like another one to try. Thanks

Rocky Mountain Woman

Wednesday 21st of September 2011

I love your orange skillet! Much cuter than my old black one, but I'll try your wonderful recipe in it anyway....

brown butter, oh yeah...

SoupAddict

I'm not normally a fan of Le Creuset, but I'm a sucker for the orange kitchenware (my first major small appliance purchase: the tangerine KitchenAid). Still, there's nothing like the reliable black skillet - I use them all the time. :)

Darlynne

Monday 19th of September 2011

Did you say brown butter? Yum.

I did! It makes an amazingly beautiful crust.