Cornbread

Expectation: To learn more about corn and bake a delicious, healthier cornbread!

Winning Recipe: Whole Grain Cornbread with Honey Butter

I chose to try out some cornbread since it's such a classic summer treat. I found a great recipe in the King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking book, which had a lot of variations that sounded interesting. I made the basic recipe and it turned out really well. Then I tried my own variation to use some fresh corn that came in our veggie box. The end result both times exceeded my expectations, and was better than any cornbread I had ever had. The trick is in the whole cornmeal (read more about this at the bottom of this post), which is much more substantial (not to mention healthier) then regular cornmeal. The bread is heavy, and very satisfying, with a strong corn taste. When you eat a piece, you feel like you're getting a lot of bang for your buck - a filling treat instead of empty calories. 

To find the basic cornbread recipe, buy this book. The recipe I came up with is a bit sweeter and includes fresh corn kernels:.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole grain cornmeal
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (how to measure flour)
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups buttermilk (if you like it extra moist, replace 1/2 cup with heavy cream)
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4-1/3 cup brown sugar (to taste - I used 1/4 cup, and it was just slightly sweet)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup fresh corn kernels (optional)
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon butter for pan
• butter and honey for honey butter

Preparations:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place the 9-inch square pan or cast-iron skillet in the oven to preheat. (Cornbread is best made in cast-iron, which I don't own. These directions work for either.)

Whisk together the cornmeal, flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk, honey, brown sugar, eggs, corn kernels and melted butter in a separate bowl. Add, all at once, to the dry ingredients, stirring quickly and lightly just until the batter is evenly combined. 

Remove the pan or skillet from the oven and place the tablespoon of butter into it. Swirl the pan around so the butter melts and covers the bottom and sides. Carefully transfer the batter to the hot pan, and return it to the oven to bake until the top is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve warm. 

To make the honey butter, mix one part butter with one part honey.

Nutrition facts for one serving (1/9 of recipe):

409 calories

13g fat

55g carbohydrate

6g fiber

GI 76

GL 35

About the grains and ingredients:

Whole Cornmeal retains its nutrients and fiber, unlike the more common cornmeal, found at most grocery stores, which has had it's germ removed to assure a longer shelf life. Whole cornmeal is gritty, and has a rich, round flavor. It is a great source of vitamin A, manganese and potassium. It can be found at most health food grocery stores (I found it at Whole Foods). 

Whole Wheat Pastry Flour comes from the same grain as regular whole wheat flour, but is made from a softer variety and milled to a finer texture. It has a higher starch content, but is lower in gluten and protein. The end product is lighter and more tender than that of regular whole wheat flour. Whole wheat pastry flour can be found at most health food grocery stores (I found it at Whole Foods).