Cornbread

bayoutider · July 8th, 2008, 12:03 AM

Funny story.

Back in the early 70's I was hungry for some cornbread and didn't have a clue how to make it. I had cornmeal and buttermilk but that was about it. I called a friend of mine's wife since she made good cornbread to ask her to talk me through it. She got me past the bacon drippings in the skillet preheated in the oven while I mixed the other ingredients. She told me how long to bake it in the oven and hung up.

Well............I poured the batter in the skillet and thought that ain't gonna be enough so I quickly broke more eggs, measured more cornmeal, flour, milk and baking soda and added that to the skillet. After 40 minutes the cornbread wasn't done. I figured our ovens must be different and kept cooking and cooking and cooking. The cornbread got bigger and bigger and bigger till I had this huge cornbread muffin growing out of the skillet. It was eatable but it sure did look strange. Judy got a big laugh out of my tale when I told her what happened.

Love the Ping · July 8th, 2008, 12:14 AM

Tell me about the bacon drippings. I'm assuming you cook bacon in the skillet and the let the drippings serve as a substitute for your butter (in this recipe), and place it all in the oven?

How much bacon?

bayoutider · July 8th, 2008, 09:25 AM

	Quote:	Love the Ping
	Tell me about the bacon drippings. I'm assuming you cook bacon in the skillet and the let the drippings serve as a substitute for your butter (in this recipe), and place it all in the oven? How much bacon?

Use enough bacon drippings to coat the inside of the skillet you cook the cornbread in. You can also put about 3 slices of bacon in the skillet or 3 pieces of salt pork and as you preheat the oven with the skillet in it the fat will render out. Swish the pork fat around the sides and remove the meat. You can crumble the meat to make cracklin' cornbread which is a good thang too.

Love the Ping · July 8th, 2008, 10:43 AM

Sounds good. Anything that gets more bacon fat in my diet is a positive. Haha.

BAMAFAN IN NY · July 10th, 2008, 12:10 PM

Any good Southerner has a coffee can or some other container to save bacon grease.

ROLLTRIBE · July 16th, 2008, 02:30 PM

	Quote:	BAMAFAN IN NY
	Any good Southerner has a coffee can or some other container to save bacon grease.

A Funny true story.

My wife was born and raised in Miami, well actually Hialeah (she's Cuban) and I'm from Huntsville. Well when we got married, we lived in Alabama...naturally! She had never experience southern food but quickly fell in love with my moms cooking and soon discoverd the value of keeping a jar of bacon drippings on hand. One time her sister (who has never been off concrete in her whole life) came to visit. She was helping in the kitchen one evening and came across the drippings, looked at my wife and said with the most serious expression...."Don't you think you should throw out this peanut butter? It looks like it's spoiled ". HHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA. It did happen to be a Jif jar

BAMAFAN IN NY · July 17th, 2008, 11:15 AM

My ex wife is a New Yorker. It took a few good arguments before she finally stopped throwing out my can of bacon grease.

	Quote:	ROLLTRIBE
	A Funny true story. My wife was born and raised in Miami, well actually Hialeah (she's Cuban) and I'm from Huntsville. Well when we got married, we lived in Alabama...naturally! She had never experience southern food but quickly fell in love with my moms cooking and soon discoverd the value of keeping a jar of bacon drippings on hand. One time her sister (who has never been off concrete in her whole life) came to visit. She was helping in the kitchen one evening and came across the drippings, looked at my wife and said with the most serious expression...."Don't you think you should throw out this peanut butter? It looks like it's spoiled ". HHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA. It did happen to be a Jif jar

aden · July 20th, 2008, 03:59 PM

If you like tomato sandwiches,try this. Make your cornbread the consistentcy of pancake batter,fry like pancakes,slice open and put mayo and tomato slices,with salt and pepper, its better than fresh white bread.

bayoutider · July 20th, 2008, 05:58 PM

	Quote:	aden
	If you like tomato sandwiches,try this. Make your cornbread the consistentcy of pancake batter,fry like pancakes,slice open and put mayo and tomato slices,with salt and pepper, its better than fresh white bread.

I made something like that for appetizers for a party last year and the tray was devoured in minutes.

Bama Reb · July 26th, 2008, 09:00 AM

	Quote:	BAMAFAN IN NY
	Any good Southerner has a coffee can or some other container to save bacon grease.

Ours is an old coffee percolator we picked up at a flea market for next to nothing. The metal filter is perfect for catching the leftover bacon sediments. The bacon grease we pour out of it is clean and particle-free.

Vinny · August 3rd, 2008, 07:40 PM

The best cornbread that I have eaten up here is at Virgil's in Manhattan. I'll have to try this recipe.

BamaSteve999 · August 29th, 2008, 12:21 PM

Virgil's cornbread is good - for Manhattan. It wouldn't do to good around here, I'm afraid.

I will have to say Virgil's kept me going for the year I was in NYC. Well that and the brand new Krispy Kremes that were opening there.

Brett, were you with us the night we went to Virgil's with Ringo and his parents and our cab driver almost got arrested? Good times.