Cast Iron Cornbread

     Cornbread is another one of those many recipes that everyone has a very strict opinion on. Actually, I might venture to say that chili and cornbread is one of the riskiest meals to bring to a gathering because everyone has their favorite way to make it and each way is very very different. In my opinion, cornbread should be an easy side to make, best served in a skillet, no chunks, and sweet to the point where it could almost be called cake instead of cornbread. If that is not now you like yours, I'm sorry but this is not the recipe for you. 

    To start making my cornbread I first preheat my oven and put my skillet in with about a tablespoon of butter. I keep my eye on this while I'm mixing the batter because I do not want to burn the butter, just melt it. While that's going, I mix my soft butter, oil, sugar, honey, eggs, and milk. This is obviously better with buttermilk, but that is something I very rarely have on hand so milk is usually what I use. 

    When all of that is mixed smooth, I mix together my flour, cornmeal, salt, baking soda, and baking powder, before folding it into my dry ingredients. At this point the butter in my skillet should be good and melted so I swirl it around to make sure most of the skillet is coated before pouring in my batter. I bake my batter for 28-32 minutes. The finished cornbread should be golden around the edges and set in the middle.

    I finish my cornbread off by slathering butter on top while it's still hot and serving with an extra drizzle of honey. This is my perfect side to black bean soup or my venison chili. It is absolutely seasonless and can be enjoyed in summer, fall, winter, or spring as an addition to a cozy meal or just a snack when you want something sweet that won't make you too guilty. It's not technically cake right? 

    What did you think of this recipe? Use the comment section below!