A big, tender golden cake baked in a cast-iron skillet! This cornbread recipe, by Chef Deborah Madison, is slightly sweetened. You can leave out the sugar or honey if you wish. And as for the cornmeal, you can use all cornmeal (check your local farmers market for unique varieties) or a mixture of half corn meal and all-purpose flour. The latter makes a somewhat lighter bread.

Skillet Cornbread Ingredients

4 tablespoons Kalona SuperNatural™ organic butter
2 cups stone ground white or yellow corn meal, or 1 cup each corn meal and all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons sugar or 3 tablespoons honey
2 cups Kalona SuperNatural™ organic buttermilk

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375’F. Put a 10-inch cast iron skillet in the oven while it’s heating with the butter while you get everything else together. Stir the dry ingredients together in one bowl, and mix the eggs, honey, and buttermilk in another. Remove the pan from the oven, brush the sides with the butter then pour the rest into the wet ingredients. Combine the wets and the dry ingredients and stir just long enough to make a smooth batter. Pour the batter right into the hot pan and bake until lightly browned and springy to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes.