Virginia Willis Cheddar Cornbread Recipes

CHEDDAR CHEESE CORNBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400F.
• Generously butter an 8 inch square baking pan.
• In a large bowl, stir together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar (if using) baking soda and salt.
• Mix in the buttermilk, eggs and melted butter.
• Stir in the corn kernels and cheese and scrape the batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Let cool slightly in pan before serving.

VIRGINIA WILLIS' CHEDDAR CORNBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400. Place butter in 10 1/2-inch cast-iron skillet and heat in oven 10 to 15 minutes.
• In a bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir in 1 cup of the cheese.
• Remove skillet from the oven and pour melted butter into the flour mixture. Add buttermilk and eggs and stir to combine. Pour batter back into prepared skillet and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the bread is golden, about 20 minutes.
• Just before cornbread is done, remove from the oven and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup of cheese. Bake until cheese is melted, 3 to 5 minutes. transfer to a rack to cool slightly before serving.

CORNBREAD MUFFINS I

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease or line 12 muffin cups.
• In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar, honey, eggs and salt. Mix in flour, cornmeal and baking powder; blend thoroughly. Stir in milk and corn. Pour or spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

TAQUERIA-STYLE PICKLED JALAPEñOS

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large stainless-steel skillet over high heat. Add the jalapeños, garlic, carrots and onions. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until the jalapeños are blistered and the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. (Watch out! The cooking jalapeños can create fumes that make it hard to breathe. Avert your face from the skillet.)
• Add 1 cup water, the vinegar, salt, bay leaves, oregano and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer. Cook until the carrots are tender and the jalapeños are no longer bright green, about 15 minutes.
• Pack the vegetables into a sterilized quart glass jar with a tight lid. Top with the vinegar cooking liquid and seal. Refrigerate up to 2 weeks.

CREAMED CORN WITH BACON

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat the bacon over medium heat until sizzling. Add the corn and season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

CORNMEAL GRIDDLE CAKES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, baking powder, and salt.
• In a second bowl or large liquid measuring cup, whisk the egg and 1 cup water until smooth. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, using as few strokes as possible. The batter should be soupy but not watery.
• Heat 1/4 cup of the oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter into the heated skillet for each cake, being careful not to crowd the skillet. When the batter hits the hot oil, the edges will sizzle and become very crisp.
• Cook the cakes until the bottoms are a rich brown and bubbles form on the tops and along the edges, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn and brown the other side, an additional 2 to 3 minutes. For best results, be sure to cook the cakes until the edges are deep, rich, golden brown.
• Serve immediately, flipping those little babies onto a plate and passing them along while you fry up the remaining cakes, adding oil to the skillet as needed.