Cakes & Bakes: Jammy cornmeal griddle cakes

Stack of jammy cornmeal griddle cakes with butter pat on top

This past week or so has been so warm, we’ve not had our wood-fired range cooker running. That means I couldn’t produce an oven-cooked recipe for this week’s Cakes & Bakes post; no cake, no bread. Jammy cornmeal griddle cakes are a delicious brunch dish cooked on a stove top using a griddle stone or cast iron frying pan.

Wet & dry griddle cakes ingredients

Using half cornmeal and half wheat flour gives the pancakes a unique flavour. Buttermilk & bicarb rather than ‘plain’ cow’s milk gives the texture a softness and lightness.

Blackcurrant jam added to griddle cakes mixture Blackcurrant jam swirled into griddle cakes mixture

A little swirl of jam takes the griddle cakes to a different level; we used some home-made blackcurrant jam, but you can use any other to your liking – strawberry, raspberry, apricot, plum… If your jam is a little thick, simply mix it with a couple of teaspoons of water to get a thinner consistency.

Cooking a stack of jammy cornmeal griddle cakes on stovetop

Serve your stack of cornmeal griddle cakes with a knob of butter on top or with extra jam or maple syrup drizzled over.

Click here or on the image below to save the recipe to Pinterest

Jammy cornmeal griddle cakes recipe

Stack of jammy cornmeal griddle cakes with butter pat on top

Jammy cornmeal griddle cakes

Course Breakfast
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

  • 100 g/3½oz cornmeal either fine or coarse
  • 100 g/3½oz plain flour
  • 2 tbsp caster sugar
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • pinch of salt
  • 200 ml/7fl oz buttermilk
  • 50 g/1¾oz unsalted butter melted, plus extra for the skillet
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 2 tbsp jam we used blackcurrant, but feel free to use any other fruit

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your griddle/ large cast iron frying pan over a low heat. Rub a bit of butter all over it
  • In a large measuring jug, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, bicarb and salt. Make a well in the centre
  • In a medium measuring jug, pour in the buttermilk. Add the melted butter and stir to combine
  • Pour the buttermilk/butter mixture and beaten egg into the well in the dry ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to bring the mixture together
  • Spoon in the jam and swirl it through a little. Don't over-mix, a few lumps of flour is fine
  • Once the griddle is hot, pour/ladle on approx. 3tbsp/50ml of the mixture into a round shape. Allow the griddle cake to cook for a couple of minutes. When bubbles begin to form and the top begins to dry out around the edges towards the middle, flip over and cook the other side for another minute. Repeat until all the batter is used
jammy cornmeal griddle cakes ingredients
Serve with extra jam, a pat of butter or maple syrup
Keyword cornmeal, griddle cakes

Cakes & Bakes: Cornmeal loaf

Home-made cornmeal loaf | H is for Home

Dan Lepard is probably my favourite bread & pastry baker. I’ve cut out and kept some of his recipes that were published in his long-running (now sadly ended) column in the Guardian Weekend Magazine. Luckily, they’re all still available in the Guardian’s online archive.

Whisked wet cornmeal | H is dfor Home

I’ve had his tasty cornmeal baps recipe bookmarked for a few weeks, planning to give them a go. Instead of baps, I decided to turn them into a cornmeal loaf instead.

Mixing cornmeal, egg, honey, yoghurt and cold water | H is for Home

The recipe makes two, 500g/1lb loaves. I found the dough a little on the wet side and the cooked loaf a bit too sweet so I’ve ever so slightly tweaked the recipe below. Saying that, this is one of the best loaves I’ve ever baked.

Mixing cornmeal loaf dough by hand | H is for Home

It has a great, slightly springy crumb and crisp crust.

Cornmeal loaf dough in a mixing bowl | H is for Home

Lepard recommends pairing it with fried chicken – building your own (probably far superior) McChicken Sandwich or KFC Fillet Burger. Justin also likes the idea of slicing it for a smoked bacon sandwich.

Two cornmeal loaves having a final proofing in loaf tins | H is for Home

Being a vegetarian, I might pair it with my home-made hummus or grilled Halloumi for its tangy saltiness.

Two risen, uncooked cornmeal loaves sprinkled with cornmeal before going in the oven | H is for Home

What would you pair your cornmeal loaf with?

Two cornmeal loaves cooling in their tins on a wire rack | H is for Home

Home-made cornmeal loaf | H is for Home

Cornmeal loaf

Dan Lepard: Step-by-step baking
Cook Time 20 minutes
Course Bread
Cuisine American
Servings 2 loaves

Ingredients
  

  • 100 g/3½oz coarse cornmeal or polenta
  • 300 ml/10½ fl oz boiling water
  • 100 g/3½oz plain yoghurt
  • 400 ml/14 fl oz cold water
  • 1 medium egg
  • 30 g/1oz agave nectar or honey
  • 7 g/¼oz fast-action yeast
  • 1 kg/2.2lb strong white flour
  • 50 g/1¾oz cornflour
  • 3 tsp fine salt
  • Cornmeal to finish

Instructions
 

  • Put the cornmeal in a large mixing bowl, pour on the boiling water, whisk and leave for 10 minutes
  • Whisk in the yoghurt, water, egg and honey until smooth
  • Stir in the yeast. Add the flour, cornflour and salt, and mix to a smooth dough. Cover and leave for 10 minutes
  • Lightly oil a patch of worktop. Gently knead the dough on it for 10-12 seconds then return it to the bowl. Cover and leave an hour
  • If making 2 medium-sized loaves, divide the dough into 2 pieces of about 500g each. Shape into ovals with a little flour before putting into greased loaf tins. Leave to rise for about 90 minutes
  • Heat the oven to 200ºC/180ºC fan/400ºF/gas mark 6 and sprinkle with cornmeal
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden
cornmeal loaf ingredients
Keyword bread, cornbread, cornmeal

Cakes & Bakes: Skillet cornbread

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sliced skillet cornbread

When I was researching skillet cornbread recipes online, I learned that there are some strong beliefs about what is and isn’t ‘proper’ skillet cornbread. There are lots of heated debates going on on some food blogs!

Some people are purists, saying that it’s made with just cornmeal, buttermilk and egg in a smoking skillet with bacon grease; no wheat flour and no ‘extras’! Others see nothing wrong with adding sugar, corn kernels, jalapeños, avocado, bacon, cheese, honey…

Maybe it’s because I’m not an American from the Deep South, I’m not averse to adding a few extras. I also like slicing it horizontally while it’s still warm and slathering it with butter. Is that wrong or do they do that in Louisiana too?

Skillet cornbread

Skillet cornbread

Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American

Ingredients
  

  • 1 fresh jalapeño chilli
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 225 g/8oz fine cornmeal polenta
  • 50 g/2oz plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 corn cob
  • 1 egg
  • 250 g/9oz buttermilk

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 180ºC
  • Finely slice the chilli - do not remove the seeds
  • In the skillet, using 1 tbs of the vegetable oil, fry the chopped chilli over a low heat until softened. Remove from the skillet and set aside
  • Sift together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large mixing bowl
  • Slice the kernels from the cob and add to the dry mixture
  • Add the cooked chilli
  • Gently whisk the egg with the buttermilk before adding it to the mixture
  • Stir the mixture until well combined
  • Heat the skillet with the remaining 1tbs vegetable oil on the stove-top over a high heat
  • Add the mixture, using a spatula to spread it evenly in the skillet
  • Put the skillet into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the top begins to lightly brown
  • Allow to cool slightly before slicing & serving
Keyword bread, cornbread, sweetcorn

Cakes & Bakes: Bolo de fubá com coco

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slice of bolo de fubá com coco | H is for Home

I’ve finally succumbed to the World Cup-mania – this is a Brazil-themed blog post! Brazilians have a sweet tooth apparently, and this bolo de fubá com coco is a national favourite. Bolo de fubá com coco translates as ‘cornmeal cake with coconut’.

It’s quite a densely textured cake –  so folding in the beaten egg whites is an important stage in the proceedings. What isn’t quite so necessary, but makes the job that much quicker, is using quite so many mixing bowls and different electric mixers. You may even say that the time you save on the mixing, you lose on all that extra washing up!

Using a Bundt tin is traditional but it’s not essential if you don’t have one, a large round cake tin will suffice. The cornmeal gives it a lovely yellow colour. It’s a tasty and very filling cake, so don’t cut yourself a massive slice! It’s a mid-afternoon with a cup of tea kind of cake.

Bolo de fubá com coco

Ingredients
  

  • For the cake
  • 225 g/8oz unsalted butter room temperature
  • 330 g/11½oz caster sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 200 g/7oz plain flour
  • 250 g/9oz finely ground cornmeal
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 235 ml/fl oz coconut milk
  • 120 ml/fl oz milk
  • 100 g/oz dessicated coconut
  •  
  • For the topping
  • 2 tbs granulated sugar
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbs dessicated coconut
  •  
  •  

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 175ºC/350ºF/Gas mark 4
  • Grease a Bundt cake tin or 23cm/9 inch round springform cake tin
  • In a large measuring jug, combine the coconut milk, milk and dessicated coconut and set aside
  • In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and cornmeal and set aside
  • Separate the egg yolks & whites. In another medium-sized mixing bowl, and preferably using an electric hand whisk, beat the egg whites into soft peaks. Set aside
  • Using an electric stand mixer on a medium speed, cream the butter and caster sugar
  • Gently whisk the egg yolks before gradually adding them to the butter & sugar mixture mixing on a low speed all the while
  • Still on a low speed, add flour & cornmeal mixture alternating with the coconut & milk mixture
  • Gently fold in the beaten egg whites until well combined
  • Put the mixture into the Bundt/cake tin and bake for 45 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes away clean
  • In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon and set aside
  • Allow the cake cool for at least 10 minutes before carefully removing it from the tin and transferring it on to a serving plate
  • Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar and dessicated coconut over the top