Southern Cornbread

I feel a little silly posting a recipe for cornbread but I've had some really bad cornbread before. Against the advice of my husband I'm posting the super simple recipe that I use 2 or 3 times a week. You can use any of the liquids listed but each will give a different texture. Water cornbread is very coarse, buttermilk cornbread is creamy and milk is somewhere in between. I forbid you to add sugar to your cornbread, unless, of course, you're OK with being a Yankee. True Southerners never add sugar; that's just blasphemous.

For the really crisp crust that defines good cornbread you need to get yourself a cast iron skillet. I unfortunately did not get my Mama's decades old skillets. They went to my sister when my Mama moved to her new house and decided that she was no longer going to cook. Sadly, I had to begin to season my own. After about 10 years, my skillets are now starting to gain that smooth, thicken black iron look. They are also highly non-stick. When I get a chance I will make a post on the care of cast iron skillets. You can substitute a small baking dish (8x8 or similar) but the crust will not be a crispy.

A friend asked me once what was in that covered coffee cup that sits beside my stove. Bacon grease, of course. Saving bacon grease for cornbread is just something I learned growing up. Because grease is very hydrophobic it doesn't go bad for a very long time. If this idea seems strange just use vegetable oil and butter. Be forewarned though that it will just not be the same.

Serves ~8, Makes 1 - 8 or 9" pone

1½ c. cornmeal mix
1 c. milk, buttermilk or water
1 egg, lightly beaten
2-3 tbsp bacon grease (or 2 tbsp vegetable oil + 1 tbsp butter)

1. Preheat oven 450°.
2. Heat skillet over medium high heat until very hot.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, milk, and egg. Stir well.
4. Add grease to hot skillet.
5. Immediately pour cornbread batter into skillet and place into oven.
6. Bake 20-25 min or until golden.
7. Flip pone out onto heat-proof plate and serve warm with butter.