Corn Bread and the CookBook Aisle !

A visit to the library excites me almost the same as a trip to the shopping  mall does to most other members of my species ! I won't bore you, gentle reader ,with the details as to how the sight of a new and promising book makes me almost giddy with anticipation.You get the picture right ? What I would like to share is that , lately though I find myself in the cook book aisle more as opposed to the mystery or vintage romance one. It has got absollutely nothing to do with me being becoming more mature ..believe me!!! Anyways . coming back to the cook book aisle , there has been a particular book which has always beckoned me (being always always displayed prominently in the center ) but failed to pique my interest . Maybe, I like to the challenge of finding a  good book myself as apposed to it being served to be in a platter ..I mean aisle.

Suffice to say that after repeatedly "avoiding" it , I finally gave in to it's lure and managed to check it out. See , I am a Gemini and have been known to change my mind. Rightfully so,because this book turned up to be a fascinating take on the Southern culture and cuisine . It had an interesting  story line too and did not give the bored vibe of a non fiction book. Let me point out that I do not read cook books just for the recipes.....the stories behind them interest me equally as well . Good food for me is not just the right ingredients but also the heart , soul and the individuality  the person making it brings. 

Smitten  by the book, it was but natural that it would inspire my next bake.  I have tried the Mexican Corn Bread earlier  and it was  a successful bake.. since then I have been on the lookout for a good authentic recipe for southern corn bread. All too sweet buttery commercial version does not interest one. Imagine my joy when I came across this "hand me down from one generation to the next " recipe of corn bread and knew that I had to bake it at once. Though the end result had the perfect texture and authentic taste, I was compelled to make some changes to the recipes to achieve that. The batter was too runny for my taste so that prompted me to add another 1/4 th cup of corn meal.Keep that in mind when you give it a try.

Ingredients - 

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup corn meal ( found the batter too runny..so added another 1/4 th)

2 eggs room temperature

2 tbsp sugar (if your prefer sweeter ,add more )

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup butter milk (made it at home by adding lemon juice to milk)

1/4 cup butter melted

Method - 

Pre heat the oven to 425 degrees F and grease/flour a 8 inch square baking dish. You may also use a muffin tray.

 Prepare the  buttermilk by adding half a lemon to the required milk and letting it stand for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a bowl sift the flour, salt, sugar , baking powder and soda and give it a good whisk.

Now , add the corn meal and set aside.

In a separate bowl , mix the eggs, buttermilk and butter well.

Slowly add the flour mixture making sure as to not overmix.

Pour into the greased pan and bake in the preheated oven for 20 -25 minutes or till golden brown.

Cool down sufficiently , cut into squares and enjoy.