Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread

When we were in college, my pals and I would converge on the restaurant Famous Dave's for barbecue. Ribs weren't really my thing, but the cornbread muffins? Oh, good gracious. I could (and did) eat my weight in Famous Dave's cornbread muffins. (And I wondered why I gained the freshman fifteen.)

Those cornbread muffins were sweet and tender. It was pretty much an excuse to eat dessert for dinner. (Not that I've ever needed an excuse.) A little lot of honey drizzled on top took them to stratospheric levels of deliciousness.

Recently I found a carton of buttermilk languishing in the fridge, and a stroke of genius came over me. I could make my own cornbread just like Famous Dave!! I could eat dessert for dinner! My son was up for a baking project, and the two of us whipped up Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread in no time.

Now, I don't own a successful restaurant chain or anything, but I actually like this cornbread better than Famous Dave's. (Sorry, Dave.) It's not quite as sugary and has more corn flavor and texture than the muffins I enjoyed in college. Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread is the perfect side for your next barbecue.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

P.S. Amy has a delicious Southern Cornbread recipe. If you're looking for legit cornbread from a legit southerner, check it out. True southern cornbread ain't sweet like this one, but I ain't southern. Amy, hope you're not hanging your head in shame when you read this!

Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread
Adapted from All Recipes

4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8" square baking dish and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Stir in eggs until combined, then stir in buttermilk and baking soda.

In a separate bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, and salt. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients just until combined. (Don't overmix.)

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes.

Serve warm with butter and honey if you want to guild the lily.

My little chef got hungry when we were taking pictures for the blog. Can't blame him!

Even Better Irish Soda Bread

I mentioned on Facebook yesterday that I was making Irish Soda Bread as part of our St. Patrick's Day celebration. While Elaine was taking her afternoon snooze, Danny and I got baking. He is an expert at leveling the flour and is quite handy with a whisk. It makes the biggest mess you can imagine, but we both get a kick out of our kitchen projects.

The recipe I made last year was dynamite, but I just can't leave well enough alone. I wondered if we could make it just a little bit better—even more rich and tender than it already was. So I decided to add a few additional tablespoons of butter because...butter. And an egg yolk couldn't hurt, right? I'm not sure if it was the tweaks to the recipe or my fantastic sous chef (thanks, Danny boy!), but this year's Irish Soda Bread rocked my world.

I didn't want to forget the updated recipe, and I thought you all deserved to have it as well. So even though St. Patrick's Day is over, this Even Better Irish Soda Bread would make the perfect addition to your table this weekend. Eat it warm, slathered with butter. Enjoy it for breakfast, along side a cup of tea in the afternoon, or serve it with Malissa's Slow Cooker Corned Beef for the perfect Irish dinner.

We're keeping the St. Patrick's Day spirit going for one more day!

Let's get cooking!
Erin  

Even Better Irish Soda Bread
Adapted from this recipe

3 c flour
1/4 c sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg yolk
1 cup raisins
1-2 tablespoons milk
1-2 tablespoons coarse sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir in melted butter until the mixture looks crumbly.

In a separate bowl, stir together buttermilk and egg yolk. Stir buttermilk mixture and raisins into the flour until the dough just comes together in a shaggy mixture.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly-floured counter. Knead just until the dough comes together in a ball, about 10 times. (My dough was pretty wet even after kneading, and it turned out great!) Pat dough into an 8" circle and place on prepared baking sheet. Brush top of dough with milk and sprinkle generously with coarse sugar. Use a knife to cut a large "X" on the top of the loaf.

Bake for about 45 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

P.S. Since we're still celebrating St. Patrick's Day, I had to share a picture of my littlest leprechaun. She makes me melt.

Overnight Coffee Cake

Sunday is Valentine's Day. Have you ordered your roses? Reserved the corner table at a fancy restaurant? Put the champagne on ice? No? Okay, good. Me neither.

Overnight Coffee Cake is your perfect plan for a lovely Valentine's Day. Prep the batter the night before and pop it in the oven while you're bleary-eyed the next morning. By the time you've changed out of your jammies and brewed your tea, it's ready to devour, perfectly warm from the oven. Bonus points if you bring it to your honey while they're still snuggled in the covers. Double bonus points if the breakfast tray includes a mimosa. Just saying...

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Overnight Coffee Cake
From the Randall Church Cookbook (You know I love a good church cookbook recipe.)

Coffee Cake:
2 cups flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup buttermilk*
2/3 cup butter, melted
2 eggs

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon cinnamon

THE NIGHT BEFORE:
Combine flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add buttermilk, butter, and eggs. Beat at low speed until combined, then continue to beat at medium speed for 3 minutes. (If you don't feel like using your mixer, I had success beating the batter by hand with a whisk.) Pour batter into a greased 9" x 13" baking dish.

Combine topping ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over batter. Cover and refrigerate 8-12 hours.

IN THE MORNING:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Uncover coffee cake and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Serve warm.

*Don't have buttermilk? Don't let that stop you! You can easily make a buttermilk substitute. Mix 1 cup milk and 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar. Let it sit on the counter for about 5 minutes until it thickens and starts to curdle, then proceed with the recipe.

Family Cornbread

Growing up I don't think I ever knew you could make cornbread from a Jiffy box or that some "cornbread" is sweet. Now I'm more than all grown  up and here to tell you that cornbread should never come from a box or taste sweet.

My family always made homemade savory cornbread. That's why I call this Family Cornbread. My Ohio-born mom learned how to make it after marrying my Tennessee-born dad. Cornbread and homemade banana pudding with scratch-made (no box!) vanilla pudding.

Growing up we'd have Family Cornbread and beans for dinner. My grandma would make it to use in her cornbread stuffing, which also featured hard boiled eggs, the neck of the turkey and sage. (Note to self: Make grandma's stuffing.)

I serve Family Cornbread with all kinds of meals: beans, pulled pork, brisket -- to name a few. My BFF Andrea serves it with her Turkey, Black Bean & Sweet Potato Chili.

And while I don't keep  boxes of cornbread mix in my pantry, I do keep Ziploc bags of Family Cornbread mix. It's a trick I learned from Mom. Get an assembly line of bags going in your kitchen and add enough dry ingredients to each to make one cornbread. Smart.

XOXO,
Amy

Family Cornbread

3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup yellow or white cornmeal
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 beaten egg
4 tablespoons melted shortening (Mom and I just use olive oil.)
1 1/2 cup buttermilk (Mom and I use light buttermilk.)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease bottom and sides of 9-inch cast iron skillet; I use Crisco.

Combine ingredients -- dry first and then wet -- and pour into prepared skillet. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown at the edges and pulling away from the pan. Remove from oven and immediately flip the cornbread onto a plate. Cut into wedges and serve with butter. Enjoy!

Buttermilk Spoonbread

What to do with half a carton of buttermilk? Make spoonbread!

I stumbled on this easy and light recipe a few summers ago while looking for culinary inspiration beyond banana bread to use up the buttermilk sitting in my fridge. The result is a tangy and souffle-like concoction that makes a great side dish to any grilled meat. It's also a tasty vegetarian entree when accompanied by a salad or some green vegetables.

This spoonbread is in my favorites file because my son Sam asked for it again more than once.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Buttermilk Spoonbread
Adapted from Relish.com

Butter to coat casserole dish
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup stone-ground yellow or white cornmeal
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, separated
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup shredded cheese such as cheddar or colby, optional

Preheat over to 375 degrees. Butter the sides and bottom of a 1 1/2 quart (4 cup) casserole dish.

Warm buttermilk in a saucepan over medium heat. Add cornmeal and stir frequently, until thickened and smooth. This should take about 3 minutes. Stir in butter and salt. Remove from heat and let cool.

While buttermilk mixture cools, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.

Whisk egg yolks into the cornmeal mixture. Stir in green onions and the cheese, if using. Gently fold in the egg whites, a little at a time, into the cornmeal mixture. Be careful not to mix or you will deflate the egg whites.

Pour batter into prepared casserole dish. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The spoonbread should be puffed and golden brown on top and set in the center. Note: The top may split, which is totally OK! Serve warm.