I Was Tempted To Call This "soul Food," But Let's Just Call It "corn Bread."

My mother is happier with than cast that I am but she grew up in a time/place where she was used to an old cast stove as part of the house fire. She's far more used to things heating up/cooling slowly than I (a rare cook and preferring stainless for pans and gas [where we have it, we don't have it here]) am.
Well I have cast iron for meat use mainly.
But use clad cookware for all else.
 
Yield not to temptation.

So I have never liked corn bread. Didn't like my momma's. Didn't like our southern relatives'. Didn't like it in any restaurant down South, southern Midwest, and certainly do not like on the northern West Coast. Down South, it was too dry. In the Midwest, lots of different kinds and none were good. On the northern West Coast, they make it sweet! Like cake! Ewww! It's like eating grainy cake! -- And that's part of the cornbread problem: the texture.

However, my family came from the South. I also lived in Mississippi for 3.5 years. I choose to live in the North West, and would not change that, but I want to embrace my southern roots. I have even, over the last couple years, embraced writing "y'all" and I would say "y'all," if I thought of it. Further, over some years, I have actually embraced, and I celebrate, some of the southern attitudes -- the sweet ones, anyway, not the other outmoded ones, of course.

I don't like most soul food with the exception of grits, which I love. Don't like collards. Don't like buttermilk. Don't like "greens." Don't like turnips unless they are raw. WON'T eat pig or use pig grease. (Not kosher, but also, think: Robert Pickton.) Won't eat catfish or crawfish (not kosher). Had some hushpuppies in Minnesota that I really liked. Anyway....

So I keep thinking, "I should like cornbread." I want to like cornbread! I mean I really want to. So I am set on this adventure to like it.

I bought two cast iron pans and treated them: a little pan divided for 8 sections of pie-shaped cornbread and a Dutch oven for cornbread and other foods. I followed the instructions for seasoning cast iron, but I am so unsure that they are treated correctly.

My reason? They both still have thick areas of the oil in the bottom. And when I scraped at them, the scraping raised red (!!) crumbly stuff. Yes, I scrubbed at them initially, because I read that when new, they are covered in a wax. I never saw wax: I just did what they said to do. Then I rubbed on peanut oil and put them in the oven at 450 degrees F for an hour. I let them cool completely then did it again twice more. Thought I was ready to bake in them -- but the red crumbly stuff....

I am thinking I will bake cornbread this Wednesday (tomorrow) anyway. We can throw away any parts of the crust that have red stuff, and maybe that will clean the pan finally.

Thinking that I will flavor the cornbread with taco seasoning, finely chopped onions and bell pepper, and some whole kernel corn. Thought I would put yogurt in it. Serve it with butter. Maybe I will like it then.
Oh how much I miss authentic Southern iron-cast corn bread! Where my little Spaniard makes awesome food, she's never mastered the Southern corn bread. You have to have pinto bean soup with fried potatoes too though!
 
Oh how much I miss authentic Southern iron-cast corn bread! Where my little Spaniard makes awesome food, she's never mastered the Southern corn bread. You have to have pinto bean soup with fried potatoes too though!
Waaallll, I'd love the fried potatoes.....

:D
 
Writing of fried potatoes, how does everyone cut and fry their favorite white potatoes, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in your preference?

And mashed white potatoes: what are your favorites, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in this preference?

Oh, it would be hard for me to tell you my favorite fried potatoes -- I have so many!
I love latkes, served with either a large dollop of yogurt or with apple sauce.
I love potato pancakes and are just the potatoes, fried crispy. Good enough alone or with a dollop of yogurt.
I love them cut in tiny squares and fried -- squares as small as 1/2 inch squared. Great alone.
I love them cut in larger squares and fried -- about 1 inch squared. Great alone or with squares of roast beef.
Home fries: just cut in circles and fried. I often serve these with caramelized onions.
A potato cut in half and fried. Served with butter and a dollop of yogurt.

By white potatoes, I intend not sweet potatoes or yams! Sorry!
 
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Writing of fried potatoes, how does everyone cut and fry their favorite white potatoes, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in your preference?

And mashed white potatoes: what are your favorites, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in this preference?

Oh, it would be hard for me to tell you my favorite fried potatoes -- I have so many!
I love latkes, served with either a large dollop of yogurt or with apple sauce.
I love potato pancakes and are just the potatoes, fried crispy. Good enough alone or with a dollop of yogurt.
I love them cut in tiny squares and fried -- squares as small as 1/2 inch squared. Great alone.
I love them cut in larger squares and fried -- about 1 inch squared. Great alone or with squares of roast beef.
Home fries: just cut in circles and fried. I often serve these with caramelized onions.
A potato cut in half and fried. Served with butter and a dollop of yogurt.
I try and stay away from fried potatoes, especially white ones.

White potatoes and rice, really have little or no value as food.

I would rather roast a red or sweet potato in the oven with rosemary or thyme. Salt, pepper and some oil to get the heat into them and crisp them up.

Mashers have to be chunky, especially with good bangers.
 
I try and stay away from fried potatoes, especially white ones.

White potatoes and rice, really have little or no value as food.

I would rather roast a red or sweet potato in the oven with rosemary or thyme. Salt, pepper and some oil to get the heat into them and crisp them up.

Mashers have to be chunky, especially with good bangers.
What are bangers?
 
Writing of fried potatoes, how does everyone cut and fry their favorite white potatoes, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in your preference?

And mashed white potatoes: what are your favorites, and what area of the world do you think influenced you in this preference?

Oh, it would be hard for me to tell you my favorite fried potatoes -- I have so many!
I love latkes, served with either a large dollop of yogurt or with apple sauce.
I love potato pancakes and are just the potatoes, fried crispy. Good enough alone or with a dollop of yogurt.
I love them cut in tiny squares and fried -- squares as small as 1/2 inch squared. Great alone.
I love them cut in larger squares and fried -- about 1 inch squared. Great alone or with squares of roast beef.
Home fries: just cut in circles and fried. I often serve these with caramelized onions.
A potato cut in half and fried. Served with butter and a dollop of yogurt.

By white potatoes, I intend not sweet potatoes or yams! Sorry!
I love spuds in any way I can get them (as long as it's cooked)!
 
You've got it.

With a proper onion gravy.
We have a nice Irish place out here called Tayton O'Briens. It's a weird place because it's really a bar but they have a few wooden booths on one side of the place and have the best damn Irish food I've ever eaten. Like, they win awards all the time. Go figure.
 
What are bangers?

How's about "bangers and mash" I thought it was just a UK thing but sausages and mashed potato.

Spuds vary but my favourite for boiling is Charlotte, a salad variety and tasty with a bit of butter but it's not a masher.

Tesco (a UK supermarket) introduced what I believe is our first branded one. Albert Bartlett "Roosters", these even with our own par boil approach bake well.

Back when we used to try a few main crop in the garden, I think Cara worked well as a general purpose masher.

Of course I've only come across a few of the varieties available in the UK and don't know what exists elsewhere.
 
We have a nice Irish place out here called Tayton O'Briens. It's a weird place because it's really a bar but they have a few wooden booths on one side of the place and have the best damn Irish food I've ever eaten. Like, they win awards all the time. Go figure.


Best Irish product I remember tasting was in county Kildare. I'd camped a couple of days at relations of a friend's place and got asked in. He gave me a bit of his mothers just cooked soda bread made on the familiy's peat fuelled fire. Probably a bit of emotion thrown into it from my part but I've not tasted soda bread like it before or since.
 
Wait, is that not Irish?

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(don't know why it's sideways; sorry)
OK well I'm crying now.

Shephard's pie is ONLY mutton or lamb.
Cottage pie is ONLY Beef.

The chicken one, Lord only knows that that is.

The Irish stew, again lamb or mutton, not beef. Sorry that's beef stew. Totally different creature.

And as for the bangers and mash, not mashed, to use Guinness in any sauce is just so not needed.
 
OK well I'm crying now.
And as for the bangers and mash, not mashed, to use Guinness in any sauce is just so not needed.

For me, I'd choose an onion gravy.

---
Trying to bring Guinness in to things. Porter cake:

7fl oz Guinness
6oz butter
1lb mixed fruit
grated zest and juice of one orange
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
3 beaten eggs
10oz plain flour
2tsp mixed spice

Put butter, fruit and orange and Guiness into a large saucepan, slowly bring to the boil. Turn down heat and simmer for 15 mins. Cool for 10.

Stir in bicarb (froths a lot)
Strir in eggs
Add flour and mix well

Pour into a baking tin and sut some flaked almonds and demorera sugar on top.

Bake for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hrs.

The result should be a nice moist tasting fruit cake.

----
Tez, I'd fogotten about this one when we mentioned a blackcurrant drink (which is alcohol free). My mother does make this one and it does contain some alcohol.
 
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