Suthunuhs Love Their Cornbread

When it is hot summer weather, and all you want to eat is fresh vegetables from the garden, you gotta have cornbread!

Mr. Jolly likes his cornbread sweet.  I don't... might be something my Mama said about Yankees putting sugar in their cornbread mix.  I make cornbread muffins so we can both enjoy our cornbread the way we like it.  I use pink cups for mine and blue for Mr. Jolly.

If you spotted the ear of corn in the picture above, I cut the corn off  the cob and roast the kernels in a dry iron skillet until slightly  charred as if the corn had been grilled, and then folded into the coarse, yellow cornmeal.  I pour buttermilk in and mix lightly (mixture is still lumpy); add cheddar cheese, and fresh chopped jalapeno peppers; pour half of mixture in pink cups then add a little sugar for the Yankee muffins.  I don't measure anything I just eyeball the contents and look for a consistency (do not over mix)that is not too runny.

My favorite cornbread is baked in an iron skillet or cast iron cornstick pan and not in fancy cupcake wrappers.

To keep the cornbread from sticking I heat up the cast iron skillet with about a teaspoon of shortening and then throw in a tablespoon of plain cornmeal and then add my cornbread batter while it is sizzling.  This will make the crust of the cornbread crunchy.  Preheat your oven to 350°. Be sure to not overcook the cornbread, it will be all dry and crumbly inside.  Test the center of the cornbread with a wooden toothpick.  My most favorite, favorite cornbread is adding lip smacking cracklins to the batter.  Are you wondering what the heck are cracklins? Cracklins are not the same as pork rinds or pork skins you see in the grocery.  Fresh country cracklins are the hog skin with a layer of fat, then fried or smoked. 

So what's on for dinner tonight... cornbread, center cut ham steaks, spicy pinto beans(started with dried beans soaked over night)  tomatoes, and green scallions.  I could have done without the ham steaks, but Mr. Jolly thinks they will be perfect for this Suthunuh's dinner.  Ending the meal with grown-up frozen popsicles.  Home made lemonade, champagne, orange liqueur- cointreau poured into molds.