Spicy Cornbread

Whenever Mark  has chili, he loves having cornbread with it.  There are a TON of cornbread recipes out there.   I've made a few solid good ones in the past, but I was in the mood for something different this time.  I was intrigued by the fact that this recipe keeps the butter (I used earth balance) completely separate from the batter as they are added to the pan.  For this cornbread, you melt the butter with red pepper flakes and pour it into an empty pan before adding the rest of the mixed batter on top.  The result is a cornbread that is crispy and buttery, yet doesn't have nearly as much butter as some of the other recipes I've made (one piece has less than a teaspoon of butter in it).  Plus, it is spicy... and that's always a win for me (although you could definitely omit or reduce the red pepper flakes to make it less spicy!).

I should mention that I know cornbread is one of those things that some people are super particular about, especially with respect to the amount of sugar that should be involved.  This isn't at all a traditional southern cornbread, but I thought it was really really good!  I loved the spicy and sweet combination and the crispiness from the butter.  Can't wait to have it again! 

Spicy  Cornbread

yield: 12 pieces

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons earth balance (or butter)
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup fine-grain cornmeal
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk 
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup frozen corn, defrosted to room temperature (or fresh corn!)

DIRECTIONS:

1)  Preheat oven to 350F.

2) Put earth balance in a small bowl and microwave until melted.  Stir in red pepper flakes.  Pour into a 8x8 square baking pan.  Put into the oven while you prepare the bread (it's okay if the oven isn't preheated yet).

3)  In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt.  In a second bowl, whisk together buttermilk and egg.

4)  Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and add corn.  Stir just until combined.  The batter will be thick.

5)  Once the oven has preheated, carefully remove the pan with the earth balance and red pepper flakes from the oven.  Pour the batter into the pan and push to the edges so it fills the pan and is level.  Some of the melted earth balance will likely come on top, but that's fine.

6) Bake for about 30 minutes until the edges are golden brown and the center is set.

7)  Let cool for a bit before slicing and eating.  

(recipe adapted from 101 Cookbooks)