Cornbread Supper

Early summer foods pair so well with corn and corn-y things. This week we had Grits and Greens Gratinée, Blueberry Cornmeal Muffins, and Marsha Bloxsom's Corn Pudding available for testing that theory. Sour cherries from the Fourth Street community orchard added to a homemade rosemary foccacia from Johnson Street. Mick brought his famous homemade seltzer. An astonishing storm formed and "bucketed" water onto all on the porch, so in they came. Some of the youngsters set up camp under the dining room table.

This naturally gluten-free recipe looks delicious.

We have tried spoonbreads (soft, luscious, buttery—described by James Beard as a "heavy, dense soufflé") as Cornbread Supper mainstays before, and used great recipes, but the spoonbreads always did what spoonbreads (and soufflés) do: deflate. Through serendipity, and thanks to a Cornbread Supperian, I lucked into the old Boone Tavern (Berea College) recipe for spoonbread, and it is far less droopy. Perhaps Boone Tavern developed an approach to spoonbread that preserves all its goodness while still working for a busy restaurant. In any case, with thanks to Kentucky food and foodways author and guru John van Willigen, here's an excellent recipe for that can be doubled, tripled, and quadrupled to feed spoonbread to a crowd. It did just that on Monday, February 25, 2013. From Richard T. Hougen. Look No Further: A cookbook of favorite recipes from Boone Tavern Hotel, Berea College, Kentucky. New York: Abingdon Press. 1955. Southern Spoon Bread 1955 Ingredients 3 c...

This cornbread, or something like it, remains a favorite of some who come to Cornbread Supper. It's often made by guess, based on what's available, but here's an attempted recipe. And now the frank admission: This cornbread is a lot of work. We could call it "Arduous Cornbread." You have to love it, or serve it to people who love it, to make it worthwhile. For one 12-inch cast iron skillet, or one 9-inch skillet and a smaller 6-inch one as well. Should serve 8 - 14, depending on so many factors. Ingredients 2 ½  cups unbolted white cornmeal 1 ½  cups buttermilk ½ cup browned butter, bacon fat, coconut oil, or neutral oil like grapeseed oil or rice bran oi ½ cup dry curd cottage cheese 1/2 cup sour cream 2 eggs 1 cup grated or cubed sharp cheddar, Asiago or Gruyere ½ cup grated Parmesan (save a couple of Tablespoons for sprinkling on top) 1  medium yellow or extra-sweet onion 1 cup (or more) fresh or frozen corn kernels (if frozen, you can add ...

When Tom Eblen walks into the house for Cornbread Supper, he often carries a beautiful, warm loaf of bread. When he leaves after Supper, I've never seen him take any bread home. Regardless of other foods on the table, people gravitate to this delicious round loaf, and systematically reduce it to nothing but a few crumbs. Tom generously shared the recipe, which he first got from his daughter Mollie, and has tweaked a little. Thank you, Tom. Good & Easy Crusty Bread 2 cups lukewarm water 1 T dry yeast 1 T sea or kosher salt 4 1/2 cups of all purpose flour Mix water and yeast in a large bowl. After about five minutes, stir in salt, then gradually stir in flour with a wooden spoon until the dough is uniformly moist. Cover the wet dough with a lid, but not airtight. (I usually set a pizza pan on the bowl.)  Let it rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse — at least two hours and no more than five hours.  You can bake after that, but I often f...

For 36 muffins Heat oven to 450 degrees. Spray muffin tins with Bakers Joy. Grind 3 tablespoons golden flaxseed until very fine. Stir thoroughly into 9 tablespoons of water. (This is the egg substitute.) Mix together in one bowl: 3 1/3 cups gluten-free all purpose flour (I like Bloomfield) 1 3/4 cup unbolted white (or yellow) cornmeal (I like Weisenberger) 1 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum 5 Tablespoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt Mix together in second bowl: Flaxseed mixture 14 ounces refined coconut oil, melted (refined works best at the high baking temperature) 3/4 cup excellent sorghum (I like Country Rock) 2 cups cultured coconut milk 1 Tablespoon each (or to taste): ground coriander, ground cumin, ground cayenne Stir wet and dry ingredients together thoroughly. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Turn out immediately and eat, or let cool outside muffin tins, to prevent steaming the crust.

For 12 muffins Heat oven to 475 degrees. Spray muffin tins with Bakers Joy. Mix together in one bowl: 1 3/4 cups unbolted white (or yellow) cornmeal (I like Weisenberger) 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt Add in: 2 cups buttermilk (I like JD Country Milk) 1 small egg 1/4 pound pork cracklings (or more, or less, to taste) Stir thoroughly. Divide dough into muffin cups. Bake about 20 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from pans immediately to avoid steaming the crust. Enjoy plain, with butter, or with sorghum butter.  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For 36 muffins Heat oven to 475 degrees. Spray muffin tins with Bakers Joy. Mix together in one bowl: 5 1/4 cups unbolted white (or yellow) cornmeal (I like Weisenberger) 5 teaspoons baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 Tablespoon salt Add in: 6 cups buttermilk (I like JD Country Milk) 3 small eggs 3/4 pound pork cracklings (or more, or less, to taste) Stir thor...