This northern vs southern cornbread silliness has to stop. this is a cake. it has absolutely nothing to do with cornbread in the south. if I made a video for fish cakes, would you be leaving me comments saying "this is not how I make cake. I put flour, eggs, and sugar into mine." Yes, some recipes have the same name, but you need to put that into context. I could call it a "corn cake," but that sounded pretentious given that anyone in the US would recognize it as Northern cornbread. Just like banana bread and zucchini bread are not really "bread," but we can still call them that because most people knows what we mean by that.
I agree! I grew up in the south and have always had southern cornbread, but this looks delicious, and I'm looking forward to making some soon. Thanks for sharing the recipe! (my favorite way to eat southern cornbread is to break it up into small chunks and eat it in milk like cereal, but in a glass. It might sound strange but many others in the south do so, and I think it's delicious.)
I read the comments thinking there was some giant argument going on and there isn’t , this was a bit of an overreaction. More comments and discussion in general bring more engagement to your videos which help the algorithm but also judging by your accent I think it’s pretty prententious in itself what to tell southern Americans not to care about …. This is a pretty rudimentary “ argument “ people are stating their opinions it really isn’t that serious. You received the same feedback you typically receive on any other video that has a cultural origin
@@MNIU_ No, it isn't pretentious at all. No one ever claimed this is the only cornbread. Some Southerner always has to chime in anytime anyone posts a yellow cornbread recipe anywhere, accusing the poster of putting up a bad recipe because it isn't a Southern one. It's annoying and ridiculous. Southerners need to realize they don't have exclusive rights to the word cornbread, nor is there only one definition. And what does her accent have to do with anything? That sounds borderline racist.
I’m a true 73 year old southern lady. I’ve never added sugar to my cornbread. Saying that, the hot button about sugar/no sugar is ridiculous. Life is too short -make yours the way you like it! Your recipe intrigued me, so I made it this afternoon. I love it. It’s not the cornbread I would serve with chili, but what a treat for breakfast or snack.
I made this a day or two ago and it's delicious! I wondered why you used milk instead of buttermilk but your comment about this being a cake explains it. I filled an 8 x 8" baking pan and it cooked up in about a half an hour or so and used the leftovers to fry in butter for breakfast. Thank you for this recipe! I will be making it again and again. And thank you for using gram measurements, especially for the eggs. I normally purchase jumbo but frequently receive fresh from a friend so knowing I needed 200 g made it quite easy for me.
I made this yesterday in my 10x14 Detroit-style pizza pan and it came out great! It needed 5 minutes less in the oven because the batter spread thinner than in a 9x13. Definitely going to make this again. Thanks Helen!
One of my favorite parts of this recipe is when you told us how high to fill our pans (2/3). Many time we have to "guesstimate" when using what we have available.💕💕
People eat a lot of cornbread in Brazil as well. As a breakfast meal or afternoon meal with coffee. You cut a piece and smear some butter on it. In Brazil its called Bolo de fubá and some people even put some pieces of cheese in the middle and that adds a wonderful flavor between sweet and salty. When i lived in Brazil as a kid cornbread was basically in every household not only in my family but others as well.
I was looking for this comment! Indeed, this kind of cake is very popular in Brazil. Besides the cheese, other adition that makes it incredible is guava paste (it's called goiabada). It's so delicious!
Just your enthusiasm for this recipe is enough to make me want to try it. I thought you did a great job of delineating Northern cornbread from Southern cornbread. So many food products have regional distinctions. I think it's important to let people know. But the truly fantastic thing about this video was your detail on the mixing techniques and the order in which they take place. Your videos are always so instructive. Thank you so much!
Really fantastic recipe! I've made it twice in the past two weeks and my coworkers love it! On the second attempt I increased the salt by a couple grams and reduced the sugar by 10% and it was just as good but tasted more balanced.
NUANCED RECIPE REVIEW Gram measurements? I might as well give this a perfect five stars right off the bat. Thank you. The flavor is great! I like the sweetness - it's quite balanced here and doesn't make me feel like I'm eating birthday cake. However, it's kind of one-dimensional, so you might want to make a condiment or two to go along with this. The usual honey or maple butter are both hitters. To those new to this recipe, I would recommend using fine ground corn meal here. Helen prescribes either fine or medium ground in the recipe, but I found that using medium ground gave it a kind of unpleasant grittiness among the medium of the soft and fluffy "cake". The re-heating of the sides of leftover slices in a skillet with a knob of butter is ultra big-brain and I don't know why I haven't thought of it before. It adds another layer of complexity (and crispiness!) to a perennial side dish that most of us have consumed hundreds of times. It also allows you to brown the top or bottom if either didn't get enough browning in the oven. This recipe makes a lot of food. The slices are quite tall for a cornbread. It's an ideal choice if you have a large family or if you are going to a potluck. This is an overall solid recipe that has made it into my recipe rotation. Well done.
Interesting! I’ve never seen cornbread prepared this way. I make mine with buttermilk and browned butter. I love the idea of toasting it in butter! Yum!
I make many kinds of cornbreads from those with a little sugar to none, in cast iron and bacon fat, to those with fresh or frozen corn to canned creamed corn. Tex-Mex with hot peppers and cheese. I love 'em all. This is a sweeter style but I'm intrigued by browning pieces in butter. Definitely will give it a try and possibly add to the repertoire. 😋
Interesting recipe, I'll have to try it sometime. My recipe has several differences: 1) of course the ingredient amounts differ, but the big one is I use equal parts flour and cornmeal (I'm actually surprised at how little cornmeal your recipe uses, that it would have as much corny flavor as you say); 2) I use buttermilk instead of whole milk; 3) I bake at a higher temperature for less time (this is the change I'm most interested in trying, along with searing it in butter once it's cold); 4) I heat my skillet in the oven while preparing the batter, then melt and swirl 1 Tbsp butter in it just before pouring in the batter. Supposedly this produces a superior crust, but I never tried not doing it, so I can't say for sure.
I am happy with the savory cornbread I make but can never find the holy grail of sweet cornbreads. Definitely trying this one!! I think the oil is key here for the fluffy tender cake vibe.
Thank you so much for teaching us this special recipe, dear Helen ! I saw your video on my feed this morning and immediately got to work ! 😜 sooo delicious! Decades ago there was a restaurant in Newton/watertown area called Rainbow … that place got me hooked on the cornbread generally served as their bread basket ! Always love the “northern” version for sweetness and as anytime munching…not necessarily with chili 😊. Followed every word …Convection 325F for 50 mins. Light golden yellow with dry wooden skewer. My bottom didn’t come out of the skillet! 😅 I didn’t dare to let it go longer in case I dried it out 😮and I greased it with Ghee…did you by any chance “preheat the cast iron skillet “before pouring the batter in? Or was it baked in the middle or the lower third of the oven? So exciting. This is really delicious and not at all heavy! Thank you ! (Oh, haha you can tell that I am also a local😂)
Incidentally I used Morton’s non iodized table salt …the baked product leaned on a slightly salty finish, pleasant enough. But next one I will try with Diamond Kosher salt (in its ridiculous high price 😢)…perhaps it might have a sweeter finish…😂 since I have not been to Buttonwood (yet!) I haven’t a clue the standard of sweet and salty on the cornbread 😊
Thanks for trying my recipe. Diamond Crystal is cheap at Market basket. It's just Shaw's that sells it at a ridiculous price. No need to switch salts to reduce saltiness, just use a bit less. I didn't preheat the skillet. Mine is just well seasoned, so nothing sticks. I haven't tested preheating the skillet, but I suspect it would result in very uneven baking. I bake in the middle of the oven, but if your bottom didn't brown, try setting your rack closer to the bottom. In case it helps, I don't flip it out like a cake. I let it cool in the skillet and cut it right in it. If you want, you can line the bottom of the pan with parchment.
If you can find *fine* polenta (“fioretto”?) it might work as a substitute - most is too coarse as Helen says but I’ve occasionally come across ones that much finer. (Avoid the instant/precooked ones though.)
To be fair, the south gets so few food things we get a chance to gatekeep over. If every Italian Nona can complain about every pasta dish on youtube and get upset when you add garlic to Bolognese, who am I to tell some grandmother in rural GA she can't be appalled at sweet cornbread lol.
Nonnas don't care, their entitled, pretentious descendents do. Nonnas only care what tastes good and makes people happy. Getting upset at food terminology is basically "young person yells at cloud".
I am halfway through Junji Ito's Uzumaki and I put it aside to come watch some recipe videos to shake off the weirdness. IN COMES HELEN WITH THAT PENDANT. 😶 That being said, thanks for the recipe! I'll try baking it in my convection oven. I have never had cornbread, so it should be fun trying to find ingredients and baking a loaf of something new. 🙂
I like to heat the cast iron with fat in it until its at smoke point and then pour the batter in it. Doing this creates a very crisp, almost fried crust. The cornbread still comes out moist, but you dont have to wait for the pan to heat up in the oven, because its already hot going in. :)
We old folks don't do grams, lol.. Tablespoon, teaspoon & cups. We're kinda slow and hate googling the conversations. Great video. Looks delicious 😋.. Will definitely make it. Thanks for sharing! 😊
@ivano8 Yep, to each their own. I prefer the good ol' method I grew up with here in the United States. Guess I'm the old dog who doesn't want to learn a new trick. Be blessed.
Speak for yourself, old timer (said with a smile)!! I'm old too, and have been using metric measurements all my life...much easier and standard around the world. As someone else pointed out, cups/tsp/Tbs are different in different countries.
I like to heat up this style of cornbread wrapped in a damp paper towel and gently microwaving. Something like 60 seconds at 60% power. It sort of steams it back to life!
Reminds me of my polenta cake. Alterations; Grate orange zest into batter Reserve 3 or 4 thin slices of orange for the bottom of the pan Replace part of the milk with the juice from the orange And there you have it As far as cornbread. I will stick with Southern style as it is so much more versatile. Great with beans, soups, stews, and cold summer garden salads. These things call for cornbread, not cake. But that is just my preference talking. Nice post.
Growing up in the South, even in my family, sweet cornbread was contentious. I'm very much on the side: this isn't cornbread; this is cake. However, my SO other does like sweet cornbread so he might enjoy this as a sweet breakfast item.
AACK! Bite your tongue. Cornbread without sugar is not as good as cornbread with sugar--or half sugar and half Verve. I have had it all ways. My great grandparents were from Missouri, and we had very basic cornbread growing up, but I sure like it better with a little sweet built in. I have had johnnycake with maple syrup--a great dessert. Now, if I make something with a lot of sugar, I make it half Verve substitute and no one can tell the difference. No judgment tho, as what you like is what you like, whether it's ketchup with your pate (like my ex) or cornbread with sugar!
Can you use the cornmeal that is already precooked cornmeal that I use for empanada or arepa like the brand that is Pan or starts with Ven... Also, can I use buttermilk instead of whole milk? Thanks
butter the muffin pan and fill 2/3 of the way. I would try 350 without convection until the toothpick comes out clean. start testing at 20 min. I don't know how long it will take -- depends on the pan material and size.
Same here, but you'll note Helen likened this to a dessert, and I'm willing to try it that way. Also, different regions of the South have different religions for whether/how much sugar to use in cornbread; sugarless is _not_ actually universal even in the South!
@@alysoffoxdaleagreed. Anytime my aunt would make cornbread, my mother inevitably always ask where the cornbread was because she must have gotten into the cake by accident.
@@scpatl4now As I said, _religions;_ this is not a point subject to rational discussion. But I promise you I can taste the sweetness right down to the amount being so small, why'd you even bother.
Do you do corn muffins in the South? Here in the Northeast, corn muffins have replaced a lot of the cornbread we used to make.. although I think of them as corn cupcakes, since they're so sweet.
I will make this as a dessert! It looks great. I definitely like all corn cornbread made with lard or bacon grease to have with savory food. No sugar with that, obviously, though subbing some sweet corn purée for some of the liquids and solids is pretty tasty.
this is a cake, not southern cornbread. No, it wouldn't work to preheat the pan in the oven. the recipe is in the description below the video and is says when to add everything.
I often give likes straight away because I know Helens posts are so good. I save mine and refer back later to watch it without interruptions around me. Her Pasta tutorials are wonderful too ❤
This is a good recipe. That being said, if anyone is interested in a more masterful, albeit sweeter, cake, check out Thomas Keller’s cornbread from Bouchon Bakery (cookbook).
It's a really fascinating question. I read a few articles about it before. I was just on Google trying to find an article for you that I read the talked about the affordability of sweeteners especially post civil war and I couldn't find it. I can only find articles talking about the composition of cornmeal changing and how flour and sugar were added to recreate the texture of some of the earlier styles. Personally I like a little sweetness in my cornbread but I don't like it to be super sweet. I just wanted to taste sweet like fresh corn if that makes sense. Like if I were making jiffy mix I would add maybe one or two tablespoons of sugar to it but I know other people up north might add a quarter cup of sugar to it.
northern is more cake-like in consistency and sweeter, whilst southern is more dry and crumbly, and is savory. sometimes southern has whole corn kernels added in (which i love). Both are great in their own ways, i think.
Being from the south, a couple of things different - the pan is in the over as it preheats so that when you pour in the batter it fries the bottom and of course, cornbread is meant to be savory - maybe garlic, cheese or hot peppers - unless you're making the pancakes or it's for desert. Then it's corn cake.
My cornbread is terrible. Contrary to your claim, I believe my biggest mistake was buying the cheapest store brand cornmeal I could find. There was almost no corn flavor. This is important because I don’t eat norther dessert “cornbread”. I plan to ask my relatives which cornmeal they use.
Thank you, for clarifying: this is NORTHERN Cornbread, NOT SOUTHERN. In the South, that is a cake, because because there is more Wheat Flour than cornmeal. There is so much wheat flour, this would NOT taste good without the sugar, since this recipe relies on the butter and baking powder for salt. This is a cake, because all that stiring and combining would deplete the baking powder, by the time you get it into the pan. Her flat pancakes reflect this. All leavening in this recipe is from the eggs and the wheat flour. Of course, there could still be some lift from a little bit of the baking powder, but I would wager: you could leave the BP out of this recipe and it would still rise this tall, because there are so many eggs and wheat flour. To be succinct: I HAVE NO DOUBTS THIS IS A TASTY TREAT. CUTTING IT AND FRYING IT IN BUTTER SOUNDS DELISH. As a Texan, I'm only clarifying: this is NOT Southern Cornbread, and if you come to the south and order Cornbread from a menu, IT WILL BE NOTHING LIKE THIS SOFT FLUFFY CAKE. Southern Cornbread, from historic recipes, is dense, and a little grainy from a course grind corn meal. There is NO WHEAT FLOUR in historic recipes, so they are Gluten Free. This is adding a few other ingredients and making Bread instead of Grits, from that course ground corn meal. Southern Cornbread is a meal to itself, it is that filling. My siblings and I pinch cornbread into a glass of milk, and eat it like that for a snack. Many nights, that was my mother's supper, not because there was no other food, but a glass of milk and cornbread was all she needed- it was that filling. And yes, my mother was a small lady. Southern Cornbread recipies can be savory with salt, or LIGHTLY sweet with sugar or honey or molasses. But ALL of those recipes are for a compliment to a meal- NOT A DESSERT. Some recipies are so dense, you can deep fry it into madeline shapes, like hushpuppies.
@@jetv1471 Oh, that's a whole other recipe. Still tastly, but different. In TexMex they add cheese and jalapeno to cornbread. It's a versatile quick bread.
You are completely wrong about the leavener. Double acting baking powder will not produce all of its bubbles until it is heated. Yes, baking soda and single acting baking powder can have the bubbles dissipate, but I've honestly never had this happen even with baked goods made entirely with baking soda. This is an incredibly normal amount of mixing for a baking powder cake. Wheat flour will not produce leavening by itself. Eggs obviously can produce leavening, but not in the way she incorporated them as a watery mixture. Leaving out the BP would 100% produce an inedibly dense cake. The pancakes at the end are not flat.
It's hard to give a thumbs up when it's difficult to make your recipes. Imperial Measurement System amounts would be greatly appreciated, then many of us could enjoy making your recipes.
American standard measurements do not work with European silly measurements, its either a cup..or it's not, and for some reason Europe seems to think it's not. This is crazy math..1+1 =2...European 1+1= 2.2
This northern vs southern cornbread silliness has to stop. this is a cake. it has absolutely nothing to do with cornbread in the south. if I made a video for fish cakes, would you be leaving me comments saying "this is not how I make cake. I put flour, eggs, and sugar into mine." Yes, some recipes have the same name, but you need to put that into context. I could call it a "corn cake," but that sounded pretentious given that anyone in the US would recognize it as Northern cornbread. Just like banana bread and zucchini bread are not really "bread," but we can still call them that because most people knows what we mean by that.
I agree! I grew up in the south and have always had southern cornbread, but this looks delicious, and I'm looking forward to making some soon. Thanks for sharing the recipe! (my favorite way to eat southern cornbread is to break it up into small chunks and eat it in milk like cereal, but in a glass. It might sound strange but many others in the south do so, and I think it's delicious.)
it is such a dumb argument. when made right, both taste good! they're just different.
You are correct! As soon as she said flour, I stopped the video.
I read the comments thinking there was some giant argument going on and there isn’t , this was a bit of an overreaction. More comments and discussion in general bring more engagement to your videos which help the algorithm but also judging by your accent I think it’s pretty prententious in itself what to tell southern Americans not to care about …. This is a pretty rudimentary “ argument “ people are stating their opinions it really isn’t that serious. You received the same feedback you typically receive on any other video that has a cultural origin
@@MNIU_ No, it isn't pretentious at all. No one ever claimed this is the only cornbread. Some Southerner always has to chime in anytime anyone posts a yellow cornbread recipe anywhere, accusing the poster of putting up a bad recipe because it isn't a Southern one. It's annoying and ridiculous. Southerners need to realize they don't have exclusive rights to the word cornbread, nor is there only one definition.
And what does her accent have to do with anything? That sounds borderline racist.
I’m a true 73 year old southern lady. I’ve never added sugar to my cornbread. Saying that, the hot button about sugar/no sugar is ridiculous. Life is too short -make yours the way you like it! Your recipe intrigued me, so I made it this afternoon. I love it. It’s not the cornbread I would serve with chili, but what a treat for breakfast or snack.
Thanks for giving it a shot :)
I really want to try the pancakes version!!!!!!
Just love how passionately you speak about any recipe you share. You have such a positive energy that is so contagious.
Made exactly as directed. Result is fantastic. Thank you, Ms. Rennie.
I made this a day or two ago and it's delicious! I wondered why you used milk instead of buttermilk but your comment about this being a cake explains it. I filled an 8 x 8" baking pan and it cooked up in about a half an hour or so and used the leftovers to fry in butter for breakfast. Thank you for this recipe! I will be making it again and again. And thank you for using gram measurements, especially for the eggs. I normally purchase jumbo but frequently receive fresh from a friend so knowing I needed 200 g made it quite easy for me.
I made this yesterday in my 10x14 Detroit-style pizza pan and it came out great! It needed 5 minutes less in the oven because the batter spread thinner than in a 9x13. Definitely going to make this again. Thanks Helen!
One of my favorite parts of this recipe is when you told us how high to fill our pans (2/3). Many time we have to "guesstimate" when using what we have available.💕💕
People eat a lot of cornbread in Brazil as well. As a breakfast meal or afternoon meal with coffee. You cut a piece and smear some butter on it. In Brazil its called Bolo de fubá and some people even put some pieces of cheese in the middle and that adds a wonderful flavor between sweet and salty. When i lived in Brazil as a kid cornbread was basically in every household not only in my family but others as well.
I would love to try Brazilian cornbread. Sounds delicious!
That sounds fantastic! Thanks for the idea!
I was looking for this comment! Indeed, this kind of cake is very popular in Brazil. Besides the cheese, other adition that makes it incredible is guava paste (it's called goiabada). It's so delicious!
Looks delicious - though definitely in the dessert camp. Looks like it would be great with a berry compote!
I bake my cornbread with dallups of Strawberry preserved or jam. Soooooo good!
I love cornbread so much, and I will absolutely be trying your recipe. Thank you, Helen for all you do. You're amazing, and I appreciate you.
Great looking cornbread. Cheers, Helen! 👍🏻👍🏻✌️
Pan frying the slices is an incredible idea. My favorite part of cornbread is the edges. Thank you for sharing!
Just your enthusiasm for this recipe is enough to make me want to try it. I thought you did a great job of delineating Northern cornbread from Southern cornbread. So many food products have regional distinctions. I think it's important to let people know. But the truly fantastic thing about this video was your detail on the mixing techniques and the order in which they take place. Your videos are always so instructive. Thank you so much!
Who doesn't love cornbread? - You show us great varations! - Thanks - Cheers!
Really fantastic recipe! I've made it twice in the past two weeks and my coworkers love it! On the second attempt I increased the salt by a couple grams and reduced the sugar by 10% and it was just as good but tasted more balanced.
This looks scrumptious!! I will definitely try it!! 😋
Looking forward to making this recipe
Ive added jalapeno and cheese to mine. 😋 Yummy. Sweet, heat, salty
Great idea :)
Wonderful recipe!! Makes a lot so perfect for a crowd. This will be my do to recipe!!
I love cornbread, it's delicious. Thx for this recipe.
Looks good, I really like the breakfast idea. Also think it would be great crumbled over sweet milk.
NUANCED RECIPE REVIEW
Gram measurements? I might as well give this a perfect five stars right off the bat. Thank you.
The flavor is great! I like the sweetness - it's quite balanced here and doesn't make me feel like I'm eating birthday cake. However, it's kind of one-dimensional, so you might want to make a condiment or two to go along with this. The usual honey or maple butter are both hitters.
To those new to this recipe, I would recommend using fine ground corn meal here. Helen prescribes either fine or medium ground in the recipe, but I found that using medium ground gave it a kind of unpleasant grittiness among the medium of the soft and fluffy "cake".
The re-heating of the sides of leftover slices in a skillet with a knob of butter is ultra big-brain and I don't know why I haven't thought of it before. It adds another layer of complexity (and crispiness!) to a perennial side dish that most of us have consumed hundreds of times. It also allows you to brown the top or bottom if either didn't get enough browning in the oven.
This recipe makes a lot of food. The slices are quite tall for a cornbread. It's an ideal choice if you have a large family or if you are going to a potluck.
This is an overall solid recipe that has made it into my recipe rotation. Well done.
Interesting! I’ve never seen cornbread prepared this way. I make mine with buttermilk and browned butter. I love the idea of toasting it in butter! Yum!
Made this tonight. So sweet and delicious. Thank you, Helen!
Thank you for the recipe!
I make many kinds of cornbreads from those with a little sugar to none, in cast iron and bacon fat, to those with fresh or frozen corn to canned creamed corn. Tex-Mex with hot peppers and cheese. I love 'em all. This is a sweeter style but I'm intrigued by browning pieces in butter. Definitely will give it a try and possibly add to the repertoire. 😋
Interesting recipe, I'll have to try it sometime. My recipe has several differences:
1) of course the ingredient amounts differ, but the big one is I use equal parts flour and cornmeal (I'm actually surprised at how little cornmeal your recipe uses, that it would have as much corny flavor as you say);
2) I use buttermilk instead of whole milk;
3) I bake at a higher temperature for less time (this is the change I'm most interested in trying, along with searing it in butter once it's cold);
4) I heat my skillet in the oven while preparing the batter, then melt and swirl 1 Tbsp butter in it just before pouring in the batter. Supposedly this produces a superior crust, but I never tried not doing it, so I can't say for sure.
Wish I lived closer, I'd check out some classes! One of my favorite youtube channels.
What a delicious way to make pancakes!
This would be good for breakfast with orange butter. Yum
I am happy with the savory cornbread I make but can never find the holy grail of sweet cornbreads. Definitely trying this one!! I think the oil is key here for the fluffy tender cake vibe.
YUM! YUM! YUM!!!! I love corn bread and that looks delicious! Thanks !
This does look good! I think I will have to make this sometime soon.
Wow, looks amazing!
thumbs up for the butter use.
Thank you so much for teaching us this special recipe, dear Helen ! I saw your video on my feed this morning and immediately got to work ! 😜 sooo delicious! Decades ago there was a restaurant in Newton/watertown area called Rainbow … that place got me hooked on the cornbread generally served as their bread basket ! Always love the “northern” version for sweetness and as anytime munching…not necessarily with chili 😊. Followed every word …Convection 325F for 50 mins. Light golden yellow with dry wooden skewer. My bottom didn’t come out of the skillet! 😅 I didn’t dare to let it go longer in case I dried it out 😮and I greased it with Ghee…did you by any chance “preheat the cast iron skillet “before pouring the batter in? Or was it baked in the middle or the lower third of the oven? So exciting. This is really delicious and not at all heavy! Thank you ! (Oh, haha you can tell that I am also a local😂)
Incidentally I used Morton’s non iodized table salt …the baked product leaned on a slightly salty finish, pleasant enough. But next one I will try with Diamond Kosher salt (in its ridiculous high price 😢)…perhaps it might have a sweeter finish…😂 since I have not been to Buttonwood (yet!) I haven’t a clue the standard of sweet and salty on the cornbread 😊
Thanks for trying my recipe. Diamond Crystal is cheap at Market basket. It's just Shaw's that sells it at a ridiculous price. No need to switch salts to reduce saltiness, just use a bit less. I didn't preheat the skillet. Mine is just well seasoned, so nothing sticks. I haven't tested preheating the skillet, but I suspect it would result in very uneven baking. I bake in the middle of the oven, but if your bottom didn't brown, try setting your rack closer to the bottom. In case it helps, I don't flip it out like a cake. I let it cool in the skillet and cut it right in it. If you want, you can line the bottom of the pan with parchment.
Thank you Helen!
I just got some EXPENSIVE corn meal. Imported. Sadly cornbread is not a British staple. But I enjoy expanding English taste. Thanks!
If you can find *fine* polenta (“fioretto”?) it might work as a substitute - most is too coarse as Helen says but I’ve occasionally come across ones that much finer. (Avoid the instant/precooked ones though.)
@@drtbantha Thanks for the suggestion!
You will get plenty corn meal at the Indian shops, cheap too🙏
@@stellafosua5578 Another good idea. Thanks.
I really like Alex Guarnaschelli’s cornbread recipe. Preheated cast iron, 1 tb of butter melting/browning in the pan, and sugar sprinkled on top.
Does that mean I can call pound cake southern bread? Oh that will improve my diet. ;) Love you, Helen.
To be fair, the south gets so few food things we get a chance to gatekeep over. If every Italian Nona can complain about every pasta dish on youtube and get upset when you add garlic to Bolognese, who am I to tell some grandmother in rural GA she can't be appalled at sweet cornbread lol.
Nonnas don't care, their entitled, pretentious descendents do. Nonnas only care what tastes good and makes people happy. Getting upset at food terminology is basically "young person yells at cloud".
Thank you!!!
Lovely video as always! I
I am halfway through Junji Ito's Uzumaki and I put it aside to come watch some recipe videos to shake off the weirdness.
IN COMES HELEN WITH THAT PENDANT. 😶
That being said, thanks for the recipe! I'll try baking it in my convection oven. I have never had cornbread, so it should be fun trying to find ingredients and baking a loaf of something new. 🙂
That corn bread looks so damn good I’m going to have to have a cold shower after watching this, it’s got me feeling some sort of way
I like to heat the cast iron with fat in it until its at smoke point and then pour the batter in it. Doing this creates a very crisp, almost fried crust. The cornbread still comes out moist, but you dont have to wait for the pan to heat up in the oven, because its already hot going in. :)
Oooohwww.... what an incredible dangerous recipe! 😂😂
Aha! I can taste the stuffed waffles already!
We old folks don't do grams, lol.. Tablespoon, teaspoon & cups. We're kinda slow and hate googling the conversations. Great video. Looks delicious 😋.. Will definitely make it. Thanks for sharing! 😊
I refuse to use a recipe that isn't in grams. I'm also old but cups/tsp/Tbs are different in different countries.
@ivano8 Yep, to each their own. I prefer the good ol' method I grew up with here in the United States. Guess I'm the old dog who doesn't want to learn a new trick. Be blessed.
You can get a decent scale for $15 - I promise it’s worth it if you like to bake!
@@michaelwebb57if you do it on a scale you don’t even need measuring spoons and cups, just simple addition as you add stuff
Speak for yourself, old timer (said with a smile)!! I'm old too, and have been using metric measurements all my life...much easier and standard around the world. As someone else pointed out, cups/tsp/Tbs are different in different countries.
I like to heat up this style of cornbread wrapped in a damp paper towel and gently microwaving. Something like 60 seconds at 60% power. It sort of steams it back to life!
Reminds me of my polenta cake.
Alterations;
Grate orange zest into batter
Reserve 3 or 4 thin slices of orange for the bottom of the pan
Replace part of the milk with the juice from the orange
And there you have it
As far as cornbread. I will stick with Southern style as it is so much more versatile. Great with beans, soups, stews, and cold summer garden salads.
These things call for cornbread, not cake.
But that is just my preference talking.
Nice post.
Great
What differences would there be if I used buttermilk instead of milk?
no difference, buttermilk works
Growing up in the South, even in my family, sweet cornbread was contentious. I'm very much on the side: this isn't cornbread; this is cake. However, my SO other does like sweet cornbread so he might enjoy this as a sweet breakfast item.
Hi Helen, when you say "Preheat to X if you have a convection fan, or Y if you don't", what does that mean for European ovens?
Most European ovens have convection, so you'd preheat it for use with convection.
This is the recipe I grew up on with the exception of sugar. You don’t need it. Leave out the sugar and pour maple syrup over instead!
What does it matter if you're pouring sugar all over it anyway? 😂
As far as I know, sugar makes dough light and fluffy.
Probably that’s the secret to get light and fluffy cornbread in this recipe.
@@hollydaugherty2620 you’re eating half as much sugar!
@@evgeniapshenichnova4289 it’s wonderfully light and fluffy. Don’t want to leave out sugar? Don’t then!
AACK! Bite your tongue. Cornbread without sugar is not as good as cornbread with sugar--or half sugar and half Verve. I have had it all ways. My great grandparents were from Missouri, and we had very basic cornbread growing up, but I sure like it better with a little sweet built in. I have had johnnycake with maple syrup--a great dessert. Now, if I make something with a lot of sugar, I make it half Verve substitute and no one can tell the difference. No judgment tho, as what you like is what you like, whether it's ketchup with your pate (like my ex) or cornbread with sugar!
Can you use the cornmeal that is already precooked cornmeal that I use for empanada or arepa like the brand that is Pan or starts with Ven... Also, can I use buttermilk instead of whole milk? Thanks
buttermilk -- yes; masa harina -- no.
Helen. How would you bake this as muffins? My husband is going on a bird trip, and muffins are easier for him to carry. Thx.
butter the muffin pan and fill 2/3 of the way. I would try 350 without convection until the toothpick comes out clean. start testing at 20 min. I don't know how long it will take -- depends on the pan material and size.
If you don’t have a confection oven what temp and for how long would it be baked for?
read the recipe in the description below
Yum!
I come from the south. We don't do sweet cornbread. This does sound delicious though.
Same here, but you'll note Helen likened this to a dessert, and I'm willing to try it that way.
Also, different regions of the South have different religions for whether/how much sugar to use in cornbread; sugarless is _not_ actually universal even in the South!
@@alysoffoxdaleagreed. Anytime my aunt would make cornbread, my mother inevitably always ask where the cornbread was because she must have gotten into the cake by accident.
@@alysoffoxdale You can still have some sugar in it. Just not enough to make it sweet.
@@scpatl4now As I said, _religions;_ this is not a point subject to rational discussion. But I promise you I can taste the sweetness right down to the amount being so small, why'd you even bother.
Do you do corn muffins in the South? Here in the Northeast, corn muffins have replaced a lot of the cornbread we used to make.. although I think of them as corn cupcakes, since they're so sweet.
Would it work to make this without AP flour, with all cornmeal or with gf flour substituted?
With only cornmeal it would likely be very crumbly and might not hold together. The gluten in the AP flour may be giving it the necessary structure.
This lady always makes fabulous cooking videos! But, TBH, sometimes I watch them just because she is so beautiful and stylish...
I will make this as a dessert! It looks great. I definitely like all corn cornbread made with lard or bacon grease to have with savory food. No sugar with that, obviously, though subbing some sweet corn purée for some of the liquids and solids is pretty tasty.
this amount of sugar made my southern heart break! i thought WE loved sugar 🤣🤣🤣
Two observations: I think the pan is supposed to preheat in the oven. Also, didnt catch when the oil is supposed to be added. Love your recipes!
this is a cake, not southern cornbread. No, it wouldn't work to preheat the pan in the oven. the recipe is in the description below the video and is says when to add everything.
OH! Guess I know what we're having tonight for dinner.
I really want to make this but RUclips won't let me copy the text from the description 😢
just try another device. It works on a desktop for me.
The recipe doesn't include the amount of melted butter for the batter. Would you please let us know how much to use?
Look in the description below the video. There is a full recipe. It's 113 g of butter (1 stick)
@@helenrennie With respect, the melted butter is not in the list of ingredients. Really.
Posted 56 seconds ago and no views ? Is the internet asleep ? :) Hi Helen ....................... *first*
People usually watch to the end before commenting lmao
@@LaDivinaLover a view is regstered after 30 seconds of watch time. I was not referring to comments :)
Can't tell if this is serious or not, but I hope not.
I often give likes straight away because I know Helens posts are so good. I save mine and refer back later to watch it without interruptions around me.
Her Pasta tutorials are wonderful too ❤
Because polenta is pre-cooked?
The cornmeal used to cook polenta from scratch is coarser than regular cornmeal, more similar to the texture of grits or farina/Cream of Wheat.
@@alysoffoxdale P.A.N. Cornmeal is pre-cooked.
This is a good recipe. That being said, if anyone is interested in a more masterful, albeit sweeter, cake, check out Thomas Keller’s cornbread from Bouchon Bakery (cookbook).
What is a northern cornbread? I can't believe it's sweeter than a southern one.
It's a really fascinating question. I read a few articles about it before. I was just on Google trying to find an article for you that I read the talked about the affordability of sweeteners especially post civil war and I couldn't find it. I can only find articles talking about the composition of cornmeal changing and how flour and sugar were added to recreate the texture of some of the earlier styles. Personally I like a little sweetness in my cornbread but I don't like it to be super sweet. I just wanted to taste sweet like fresh corn if that makes sense. Like if I were making jiffy mix I would add maybe one or two tablespoons of sugar to it but I know other people up north might add a quarter cup of sugar to it.
northern is more cake-like in consistency and sweeter, whilst southern is more dry and crumbly, and is savory. sometimes southern has whole corn kernels added in (which i love). Both are great in their own ways, i think.
If you start in a cold oven, it won't crack on top :)
Being from the south, a couple of things different - the pan is in the over as it preheats so that when you pour in the batter it fries the bottom and of course, cornbread is meant to be savory - maybe garlic, cheese or hot peppers - unless you're making the pancakes or it's for desert. Then it's corn cake.
I prefer to pre-soak my cornmeal. Less gritty.
My cornbread is terrible. Contrary to your claim, I believe my biggest mistake was buying the cheapest store brand cornmeal I could find. There was almost no corn flavor. This is important because I don’t eat norther dessert “cornbread”. I plan to ask my relatives which cornmeal they use.
I’m not worried about the cornmeal; I’m worried about the refined sugar... 😮
You lost me at 250g of sugar.
That oven is 175C for the rest of the world.
Thank you, for clarifying: this is NORTHERN Cornbread, NOT SOUTHERN. In the South, that is a cake, because because there is more Wheat Flour than cornmeal.
There is so much wheat flour, this would NOT taste good without the sugar, since this recipe relies on the butter and baking powder for salt.
This is a cake, because all that stiring and combining would deplete the baking powder, by the time you get it into the pan. Her flat pancakes reflect this.
All leavening in this recipe is from the eggs and the wheat flour. Of course, there could still be some lift from a little bit of the baking powder, but I would wager: you could leave the BP out of this recipe and it would still rise this tall, because there are so many eggs and wheat flour.
To be succinct: I HAVE NO DOUBTS THIS IS A TASTY TREAT. CUTTING IT AND FRYING IT IN BUTTER SOUNDS DELISH.
As a Texan, I'm only clarifying: this is NOT Southern Cornbread, and if you come to the south and order Cornbread from a menu, IT WILL BE NOTHING LIKE THIS SOFT FLUFFY CAKE.
Southern Cornbread, from historic recipes, is dense, and a little grainy from a course grind corn meal. There is NO WHEAT FLOUR in historic recipes, so they are Gluten Free. This is adding a few other ingredients and making Bread instead of Grits, from that course ground corn meal.
Southern Cornbread is a meal to itself, it is that filling. My siblings and I pinch cornbread into a glass of milk, and eat it like that for a snack. Many nights, that was my mother's supper, not because there was no other food, but a glass of milk and cornbread was all she needed- it was that filling. And yes, my mother was a small lady.
Southern Cornbread recipies can be savory with salt, or LIGHTLY sweet with sugar or honey or molasses. But ALL of those recipes are for a compliment to a meal- NOT A DESSERT. Some recipies are so dense, you can deep fry it into madeline shapes, like hushpuppies.
I love it when there are corn kernels in the bread ❤..
@@jetv1471 Oh, that's a whole other recipe. Still tastly, but different. In TexMex they add cheese and jalapeno to cornbread. It's a versatile quick bread.
You are completely wrong about the leavener. Double acting baking powder will not produce all of its bubbles until it is heated. Yes, baking soda and single acting baking powder can have the bubbles dissipate, but I've honestly never had this happen even with baked goods made entirely with baking soda. This is an incredibly normal amount of mixing for a baking powder cake. Wheat flour will not produce leavening by itself. Eggs obviously can produce leavening, but not in the way she incorporated them as a watery mixture. Leaving out the BP would 100% produce an inedibly dense cake. The pancakes at the end are not flat.
why unbleached?...... They bleach flour??
Three parts flour to one part corn meal? Sure, that'll be light and fluffy. But to this adopted southern boy, it ain't cornbread.
I tried with 425g of flour and it was awful.
You don't use cornmeal ?
… but Southern style cornbread goes better with Boston baked beans. 😂
The bread is sweet enough to be a desert - tells you all about the American diet!
Tell us you have no friends without telling us.
It's hard to give a thumbs up when it's difficult to make your recipes. Imperial Measurement System amounts would be greatly appreciated, then many of us could enjoy making your recipes.
a digital kitchen scale that does grams and lbs/oz costs about $15 at Target, and will make your baking perfectly consistent. try it, you'll like it!
Mama you have committed a food crime.
I sure wish that you would state the recipe in cups instead of grams. 😡
get with the times. baking is a precise science.
a kitchen scale that does grams costs about $15 at Target and will make your baking perfectly consistent. give it a try!
If it is sweet enough to be a dessert, it is not real cornbread.
This is a cake no bread 👎
Difficult to find a medium between North and South cornbread ... No one should ever use a mixer for cornbread ... Nice try ...
American standard measurements do not work with European silly measurements, its either a cup..or it's not, and for some reason Europe seems to think it's not. This is crazy math..1+1 =2...European 1+1= 2.2
a kitchen scale that does grams costs about $15 at Target and will make your baking perfectly consistent. give it a try!