A New Post From Allen Russell's "Hot Iron"
coming soon to the Lonesome Trails Channel
Real Southern Cornbread
A fresh hot pone of cornbread is hard to beat in my book. I'd rather have a slice of cornbread slathered with Real Butter, (not that, 'I can't believe anybody thinks this stuff tastes like butter'), than any cake I ever tasted. Don't worry about the cholesterol, that's just a myth made up by the drug companies. You only live once, might just as well enjoy it. This 9" cast iron skillet belonged to my grandmother, MaBoo, for those of you who have read "Mule". I've been eating cornbread out of this skillet since before I could walk. MaBoo never used a recipe or a measuring cup, but here's the contents as near as I can figure it.
a small hunk (3 Tblsps) of bacon grease
2 cups of white, self-rising cornmeal
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups of buttermilk
(No sugar! Save it for the cobbler, there's no place for it in real southern cornbread)
Heat the oven to 400 degrees
put the bacon grease in a 9" skillet while it's heating
(Don't worry about the smoke. It's always good to try out your smoke detectors)
Blend the cornmeal mix with the baking soda, eggs, and buttermilk in a bowl.
When the skillet is really hot, pull it out of the oven, pour the excess bacon grease into the mix and stir it in. Then pour the whole shebang into the hot skillet. It'll sizzle and pop for a minute, but that's what gives it the crunchy brown crust. Put it back in for 30 to 40 minutes, until it's golden brown.
Scoop out a big serving of Pinto Beans and Ham Hocks, add a slice of raw onion, and you got yourself a meal fit for any king or cowboy, whichever you prefer.