Recipe: Grandma's Cornbread

Grandma's Cornbread

Circa 1950's

           Today I am bringing you a recipe that is very near and dear to our hearts and has been passed down on my husband’s side of the family for generations. I always look forward to the fall and winter months and it is without a doubt my favorite time of the year. When the temperatures start dropping and the nights grow longer I turn to my favorite comfort foods for dinner. I am a very lucky girl and was blessed to not only marry a wonderful man, but one that loves to cook! He makes a killer pot roast, delicious stew, amazing chili and the dish that goes with them all…cornbread. It seems like we are making a batch every week when the temperatures start dropping. With Thanksgiving approaching I thought that there wouldn’t be a better time than to share this wonderful recipe!  It is delicious on its own and makes an amazing stuffing for Thanksgiving…at least in our family stuffing has always included good ole’ Texas cornbread.

          This recipe was passed down from Chris’s mom from his wonderful grandmother.  She grew up in Depression-era Oklahoma and it was always on the table at family gatherings.  Chris borrowed his recipe from his Grandma’s, although he does admit that the honey and sugar were later additions because “Grandma would never have made ‘sweet’ cornbread.”  I must confess that I love the sweet additions! Please enjoy this wonderful family heirloom recipe with you own loved ones this Thanksgiving!


Chris's grandmother is located on the 1st row 3rd from right with the doll

     Here is a little food for thought on this traditional southern dish to share with your friends and family this holiday season. Corn was in America long before Columbus sailed the ocean blue and was a staple for many Native Americans. When new settlers arrived in America they had to “make do” with food sources that were available to them and corn happened to be one of the most prominent. While European settlers had traditionally used finely ground wheat for their breads, anything “fine” was in short supply. Therefore they turned to corn or as it was sometimes known, maize.  John F Mariani wrote “Native Americans roasted their corn and ground it into meal to make cakes, bread, and porridges…The new cereal was precious and helped early settlers to survive those first harsh years…Before long uniquely American dishes were being developed,” It would later go on to be called cornbread and become everyday fare. However, many colonists were not thrilled with the wheat substitute, and viewed any form of bread made with corn instead of wheat a sad paste of despair.

          When settlers arrived in Texas in the early 1800’s (including Grandma’s great-great grandparents) corn was one of the first crops they planted and used it to feed their families and their animals. Over the years it has gone by many names including corn pone, johhny cakes, hoe cakes, and spoon bread. Today is no longer considered a sad day when you have fresh and warm cornbread with your meal! Please enjoy!  

My Loves: September 2014

 My Loves

September 2014 

       After a little hiatus I am able to focus my attention once again on the blog. As many of you know when I am not blogging I am the Education Coordinator for a museum. This August has been one of our busiest months to date with Summer History Camp, a battle reenactment, special boys only event, lecture series, walking tours...and much more! Thus, the job had to come first and sadly the blog remained quite for several days. However, with fall quickly approaching and schedule that is calming down... a little... I am ready to start again! This weekend I was blessed to have my family come to visit us for a few days. Our days were filled with cooking, reminiscing, shopping, laughing, eating and loving every minute we had together. I am very much looking forward to a wonderful holiday season and more family time! 

     With the beginning of a new month I thought that I would share a few of my current loves! 

  “The Vintage Tea Party: A Complete Guide to Hosting Your Perfect Party” 
by Angel Adoree

      I was blessed to receive this wonderful book from one of my dearest friend's mothers this weekend. I can only consider her a second mother for over the past 20 years she has picked me up from school, taken me to dance classes, let me spend many nights at her house and our families still take regular vacations together to this day. She knows me too well and this book couldn't be more perfect! I think that I actually gasped when I saw it! It includes everything needed to create a beautiful vintage British Tea Party with delicious recipes and beautiful illustrations.  Inside you will find delicious recipes, beauty and styling tips, vintage china, decorations and so much more! Where else can you find tea, roses, foxes, tops hats, crows and more all in the same book? At times it feels like someone took a picture of my thoughts and dreams and placed them into a book!!  Also, it doesn’t hurt that the author is a Ginger too!

http://www.anthropologie.com

Orange Blossom and Walker Tallow Honey

    
      My mother surprised me this weekend with a wonderful gift from Olive Paris located in my hometown of Paris, Texas. I received two bottles of their delicious honey-Orange Blossom and Walker Tallow Honey. I love using honey as a natural sweetener in my tea and on my buttermilk biscuits! They have a delicious variety of flavors including Walker Wildflower Honey, Walker Clover Honey, Walker Huajillo Honey and more! 

     I really can’t say enough about this wonderful new store in Paris. My husband and I use their delicious Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar on a daily basis. Nearly everything we cook is drizzled with our favorite, Garlic Olive Oil! Yummy! For those that won’t be able to visit Paris in the near future I have wonderful news… they ship! Please visit their website and like them on Facebook today!

https://squareup.com/market/olive-paris

https://www.facebook.com/oliveparistx

Alaffia GOOD Soap

       My mom introduced me to these wonderful soaps this weekend. We made a special stop at Whole Foods Market so my mom could restock on one of her favorite products Alaffia GOOD Soap! I fell in love immediately and had to pick up a few for myself. Lavender is one of my favorite scents...some would say that I have a slight obsession. They have a beautiful Lavender soap that I can't wait to use. I also couldn't resist their Fresh Mint scented soap! It's so bright and refreshing and a wonderful way to wake up in the morning! Alaffia GOOD soaps are made with certified trade shea butter and coconut oil and come in a variety of scents including Sweet Vanilla, Prairie Rose, Coconut and African Black Soap. 

www.wholefoodsmarket.com

Feather Quill Pen

        A few months ago my sister and her husband had the opportunity to travel to Switzerland and visit some of his family and take their honeymoon. I loved getting to see all their their gorgeous Honeymoon photographs and hearing stories from their journey. Knowing me all too well my sister presented me with this this beautiful feather quill pen as a gift and I couldn't be more in love!  It is a gorgeous piece they purchased in Italy!  I can't wait to  purchase some ink use it to write my thank you notes! 

Antique Trophy

        On Saturday all the girls went Antique Shopping while the boys headed to the brewery. We headed to downtown Rosenberg, Texas to visit a few of my favorite shops! One of my new favorite stops is D N S Crafts & Antiques. They have a large and varied selection of antiques and collectibles and their prices are great! I have so many great items in this store including two vintage cookbooks, framed prints for our home and this wonderful little trophy!  It will make a beautiful addition to our mantle...and hopefully be the beginning of a new collection! If you are in the area a stop at this wonderful store is a must! 

The store is located at 801 2^nd Street Rosenberg, TX 77471

In closing I leave you with this beautiful and delicious fried (baked) blackberry pie! While it may not be the prettiest pie I have ever baked it's simplicity and imperfections make me love it even more. I was so excited to learn that a recipe that I thought had been lost was found. My great-great grandmother's pie crust recipe is my favorite and I spent many hours in my grandparent's kitchens making countless pies with her crust! After a house fire I thought it was lost forever, however recently my sister discovered a copy I had made a long time ago. These weekend for the first time in over 10 years we made a batch of blackberry and apricot pies! The crust was just as delicious as I remember! 

On that very sweet note I hope that you have a wonderful day!