I’m making this tonight as I’m feeding Chili to a crowd. I’ll start it soaking this morning!
First, you get a helper. This little boy knows how to crack eggs ’cause I’ve been patiently letting him practice for years. He knows to break them one at a time into a smaller bowl first so we can fish for egg shells easier before dumping it into the dough. But wait! We’re soaking this dough to make it fluffier and easier to digest, so we don’t need the eggs yet. Just the helper.
Give your helper the whisk and combine in a mixing bowl,
2 c. cornmeal (avoid the roasted stuff – the flavor is really strong. I like just plain yellow cornmeal)
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. melted butter
1/3 c. yogurt, kefir, or buttermilk (I tell you how to make all of these in my book! Just sayin’ :))
1 1/2 c. milk
Stir this all together, cover the bowl, and let sit 8 hours or overnight. I’m usually making cornbread to serve with chili for dinner, so I start it in the morning while I’m cleaning up the kitchen from breakfast.
When you’re ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9×13 in. baking pan. THEN get your eggs out. 🙂
Add
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
Mix it all together, pour into pan, and bake for 20-25 min. until center is set and knife inserted comes out clean.
This cornbread is so moist and yummy – no choking on crumbly coarseness wondering, ‘whoever invented the stuff in the first place?‘ Of course, we cut the thick slices in half and butter both generously (’cause butter’s a good fat – whoopee!). This batch was so good, I almost didn’t get a picture before it was all eaten up…
What is your method for adding the baking powder? I’m finding it hard to evenly mix the baking powder when adding it to the wet batter. I tried mixing it with the eggs and got a very exciting frothy egg mix that was a little frightening to deal with!
If you have trouble incorporating the baking powder, your base batter may be too thick. Try adding more milk, or the eggs first, then sprinkling the baking powder over the top of the wetter batter. it should stir in easier then!
Thank you!
I really appreciate this recipe. I’m just learning how to soak my grains and flours. I also had read that it’s important to soak cornmeal in lime water. To do that, I plan on following your recipe, except I’m going to substitute 1/2 cup of the milk for lime water. To make lime water, you add a 1/2 inch of lime in the bottom of a quart jar. Fill the jar with water…shake it up. When the lime settles to the bottom, you use the top water (aka lime water). I haven’t done it yet, but apparently it doesn’t effect the taste. Making this tonight!
Elizabeth, that sounds like a great method–you’re taking my recipe to the next level! 😉
I believe the lime is like the mineral lime…(mineral???sheesh i hope thats close to right) But I know its a white powdery substance and not the fruit….Pickling lime I beleive is what its called. Never fear…you can buy pre lime-treated corn flour in the international section of your grocery store. Or Bob’s red mill carries some too…
Laura, lime with corn sounds familiar – I'm sure some lime or lemon juice added to the mix wouldn't hurt. As this recipe uses both wheat and cornmeal, I just went with the soaking method I use for all my wheat recipes.
Are you supposed to soak corn in lime water? I thought there was a different way of doing it than with wheat flour.
Looking forward to giving this a try.
Hope the time with your company was a blast! 🙂
…wishing I was part of the crowd
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I've never been satisfied with any cornbread recipe…
By the way, I started a batch of zuchinni muffins soaking the proper way for the first time. (I usually mix up my muffin batter the day before I make them, and then bake them as I get time over the next day or two…Even without yogurt or whey, letting the batter sit over night makes for much more tender muffins, so I am really curious to see what the additon of some yogurt to the batter will do.
Soaking corn or cornmeal in lime water makes the vitamin B3 available, and you get more protein value.
See Nouishing Traditions for more explanation. Thanks for the recipie! I also thought of replacing 1/2 cup of the milk for lime water.