Ingredients
1 1/2 c. yellow cornmeal
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. light brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 c. whole milk
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 large eggs
3 tbsp. butter, melted and cooled slightly
Preparation
Step 1Preheat oven to 400° and grease a 9"-x-13" baking pan generously with butter. In a large bowl whisk together cornmeal, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.Step 2In another large bowl, whisk together milk, buttermilk, eggs, and melted butter. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with a fork until just incorporated. Pour batter into prepared baking dish and bake until top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Step 3Let cool slightly before serving.
Indigenous Americans in what is now Mexico were the first cultivators of corn about 10,000 years ago, and it’s since evolved to become a belly-filling staple in diets all over the globe. In response to the cornmeal not combining well with yeast, like other ground grains, enslaved African and European cooks learned from Indigenous Americans to create simple, flat cornmeal cakes from cornmeal, water, and fat. The dough was shaped, covered with leaves, and baked in hot ashes. Enslaved Africans became reliant on cornbread for its portability and ability to absorb nutrient-dense pot-liquor from cooked vegetables. As many food creations do, those flat corn cakes evolved as cooks added wheat or rye flour, eggs, yeast, and sugar to create something closer to the cornbread we’re familiar with today. Those innovations make the corncakes fluffier, more tender, and easier to eat. Eventually, a version of cornbread found its way into almost every American home, each a bit different and reflective of its region of origin. Should cornbread have sugar? It honestly depends on who you ask. Some folks would sooner kick you out of their home before putting sugar in their cornbread, but we’ve found that a small amount of sugar (toasty, brown sugar in this case) brings some much-needed tenderness and moistness to the cornbread. What cornmeal is best? We want cornbread to taste like corn. Stone ground cornmeal provides texture and a more intense flavor than medium or fine ground cornmeal. Why does my cornbread fall apart? Too much cornmeal can be the downfall of good cornbread. When the flour to cornmeal ratio is out of whack, the cornmeal grains can block the flour grains from forming a gluten network strong enough to hold the cornbread together. Measure your flour by scooping spoonfuls into the measuring cup and leveling with a knife to get an accurate amount. Egg is also crucial for helping your cornbread hold together, don’t skip it! How to store cornbread? Wrap leftover cornbread in foil or plastic wrap and store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. These will also keep in the freezer for up to three months. Be sure to freeze in a single layer and thaw completely before eating. This recipe is an excellent place to start your cornbread journey! It’s just as perfect with a drizzle of maple syrup and a pat of salty butter as it is alongside a bowl of spicy chili or a plate of soul food. You can use leftover cornbread to make a classic cornbread stuffing or slice stale cornbread into croutons, toss with a bit of olive oil and bake at 350 until golden brown and crisp. Crumble fresh cornbread into vanilla ice cream or use it to make an upgraded strawberry shortcake. Made it? Let us know how it went in the comment section below. Editor’s Note: The introduction to this recipe was updated on June 27, 2022, to include more information about the dish.
