The only cornbread recipe you'll ever need

Let me start by saying there is no sugar in this recipe, and where I come from, there never is any in cornbread. As my grandmother said, if cornbread were meant to be sweet it would have been called corncake instead. I recommend experimenting with as many variations as you like, save for making it sweet -- as my grandmother would also say, 'That's how they do it up North.' It was not meant as a compliment.


Cornbread

1 cup finely ground white cornmeal (I use Moss' cornmeal from Kittrell, North Carolina)
2 T. unbleached flour (plain or wholemeal)
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. baking soda
scant 1 t. salt
2 eggs (large)
1 cup buttermilk (not non-fat; not even low-fat if you can avoid it)

Take a heavy, 8" square baking pan and line with foil. I do this myself, since my smallest cast iron pan is still too large to make cornbread for two. If you do have a suitable cast iron pan, by all means use it! Pour about a tablespoon of oil into the pan and place it in the oven -- heating the oil and pan makes for an excellent crust. Sesame oil makes a nice substitution for the traditional bacon grease.
Set the oven to 425*, but don't make the cornbread until the oven has reached temperature for at least five minutes. The hotter the pan, the better!

In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Whisk the eggs into the buttermilk in your measuring cup, and then stir into the dry ingredients. Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven, gently swirling the oil to coat the bottom and sides, then pour the batter into the pan (it may sizzle; this is good) and return to the oven. Let it bake 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned on top. Serve hot.


-For Jalapeno-Cheese cornbread (which I admit I had for breakfast today), dice one small jalapeno pepper and grate half a cup of good, sharp Cheddar cheese (I use Cabot). Toss these with the dry ingredients before adding the buttermilk, and bake as usual. More or less pepper and cheese can be used as you like.