Simple Cornbread

This is basic, plain cornbread; crumbly and slightly dry. It is the easiest of the three recipes on this blog (although Grandmother's Cornbread and Skillet-Sizzled Cornbread are not hard, either). It is also the most frugal of the three since it uses only 1 egg (significant only if you are planning to make a bunch!). It freezes just fine (although you'll lose a bit of the crunch in the crust) and works well with soups, beans, etc. 

Recipe from How to Cook Everything, 10th anniversary edition

• 1 1/2 c. cornmeal (I use stone ground yellow)
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1 t. salt
• 1 T. sugar, more if you like your cornbread sweet
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 c. buttermilk or yogurt
• 2 T. drippings, butter, or olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place fat in ovenproof 8-inch skillet or baking pan (cast iron is best!). Place over medium heat; heat until good and hot, about 2 minutes, then turn off the heat. 
2. Combine dry ingredients. Mix eggs and buttermilk; add to dry ingredients all at once, stirring just until moistened. Pour batter into hot skillet and put in oven.
3. Bake for about 30 minutes, until sides start to pull away from pan and top is lightly browned. A toothpick inserted in middle should come out clean.

Makes one 8-inch cornbread