The Cornbread that Lives up to its Name!
Looking for a sweet buttery side dish to compliment your chili? This cornbread recipe is one I am most proud of, and it took a great deal of convincing for my husband to sign off on my sharing it. It’s really that good! I know what you’re probably thinking. What on earth is a northern white girl doing, writing about cornbread? Listen, I get it. I’m as white as white can be, and I’m a Yankee to boot (though I am a southerner at heart, but different story for a different day). What could I possibly know about cornbread?
Well let me tell you a story.
This little white girl from small-town Pennsylvania grew up and went off to college, where she fell in love with the most handsome man she’d ever met…who just so happens to love him some cornbread (read: conebread, with a southern twang). You can read about our love story here, if you’d like. 🙂 My only experience with cornbread was a recipe from an old Betty Crocker cookbook (circa the 1970s, maybe even 60s?) which my mom used to make. No disrespect to Betty Crocker (or my mama), but it was dry, and crumbly, and not at all sweet, and I remember sitting at the table all evening, until bedtime, refusing to eat it as a child.
So, barely 21 years old, I set out to make a cornbread that would not only please this new man in my life, but make me a believer. One of the first times I made it, one of his friends tried some and immediately told him to marry me. Thus, the infamous Catch-a-Man Cornbread was born! I spent about 10 years tweaking it to the perfection that it is now, but my husband was sold on the first bite!
This cornbread is sweet and buttery, and this goes without saying, but it is great with a steamy bowl of chili. However, we have also enjoyed it with fried chicken, fried fish, and even jambalaya. It’s a very versatile bread! This recipe can be whipped up quickly, all with one bowl and one wire whisk. It is so easy! You can create a buttermilk substitute by pouring 1 and 1/2 Tbsp vinegar into the bottom of the measuring cup, and then filling with milk until the combined liquids reach the 1 and 1/2 cup line. Allow to sit for 15 minutes. I have done this in a pinch, and the cornbread is still good, but real buttermilk definitely makes a difference!
When you mix it together, don’t be afraid of some lumps. Your final mixture will be thick and a little lumpy. 🙂
Catch-a-Man Cornbread
