Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

Cornbread is a favorite food of mine. For years I had always used a cornbread mix, some of which were good. While in culinary school, I learned a few recipes that rock. This recipe is one of them. It calls for coarse cornmeal. I sometimes use regular or plain cornmeal, which gives the cornbread a cake-like texture. You can decide which you like. Also, there is no sugar in this recipe. It is not sweet. If you prefer sweet cornbread, I guess you could add a little sugar. So, here it is:

Ingredients:

8 ounces (2½ cups) Anson Mills Antebellum Coarse Yellow Cornmeal
4 oz flour
1.5 tbsp baking powder
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted European-style butter
1 large egg, room temperature, beaten
3 cups buttermilk, room temperature
1 teaspoon cold European-style butter for the pan

Directions:

1. Adjust the oven racks to the lower-middle and upper-middle positions and heat the oven to 425° F. Heat an 8-inch dark steel pan in the oven for 10 minutes while preparing the recipe.
2. While the skillet is heating, combine the cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl with a whisk.
3. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan or microwave. Combine the egg and buttermilk in a mixing bowl, then add the melted butter.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk lightly until smooth. The batter will be fairly thin.
5. Add the cold butter to the hot pan and tilt to distribute. Scrape the batter into the pan with a rubber spatula—it should sizzle.
6. Immediately place the pans on the lower oven rack and bake for 15-20 minutes. Then, transfer the skillet to the upper rack and continue baking until the cornbread is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean., 3-5 minutes longer.

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