Johnny Cakes (AKA Cornmeal Pancakes)

Recently I went through my pantry, did an inventory of what I have, what I am out of, and what needs to be used up.

This is a reminder that we all should be doing this, especially now if you are a cold weather/holiday cook and or baker. Get a head start, make sure you can find flour and sugar, and make sure your baking powder and sodas are active!

My pantry is pretty freaking well stocked if I do say so myself. One thing I like to do though is use up ingredients that are not super staples (like cornmeal) before I buy more. And I was low on cornmeal so I figured I would just use the rest up for dinner and pick up a fresh bag during the next grocery shop. I was planning on making a pan of baked cornbread but time got away from me and it was too close to dinnertime for me to bake. So I grabbed a skillet and made cornmeal pancakes instead.

Just as good, if not better (I would say better) then cornbread. Crispy, soft, rounds of perfection. Eaten by the mr who claims he doesn't like cornbread( he really liked these🤷‍♀️) and took all of 8 minutes from start to finish for dinner. And now I will probably be making these way more often now because these little pancakes are perfect for serving with soup and chili. And I did get a fresh bag of cornmeal so I am all good to go!

To the cornmeal pancakes.

The stuff. Cornmeal, white whole wheat flour, salt, baking powder, honey or maple, olive oil, and boiling water.

Simple here. Cornmeal, honey or maple, and oil into a bowl. Mix in hot water until completely incorporated. Let sit for a minute or two then add in the flour salt ,and baking powder. Mix til combined.

Batter into a hot skillet to cook, just like you would expect. Each side cooked until golden brown.

Look at that color. Cooked to perfection.

Place them on a wire rack instead of a plate as you make them, if you care about keeping them crispy.

Then you eat them. Anyway you like. You can go the sweeter route and pour some maple on a stack or smear some jam on top. Or savory like I did here, topped with tomato stewed chick peas and avocado mousse. OR just eat them straight up hot, warm, or cold.

They are good all the ways.

-C

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Johnny Cakes (AKA Cornmeal Pancakes)

makes 8-10 pancakes

• 3/4 cup cornmeal

• 1/4 white whole wheat flour

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup

• 2 tablespoons oil plus more for skillet

• 1 cup boiling water

Place the corneal, honey or maple, and oil into a medium sized mixing bowl. Dump in the boiling water and stir until everything is combined. Let sit for 2 minutes. Add in the baking powder, salt, and flour and mix install incorporated.

Grab a skillet and heat to medium on stove.

Once skillet is hot, add a touch of oil to evenly coat the bottom. Scoop batter into pan with a spoon and spread into a round that is no thicker then 1/2 inch. Cook for 3-4 minutes of until the bottom is golden brown. Flip and cook other side until golden brown. Place cooked cakes on a wire rake to keep crispy.

Eat right away, sweet of savory or plain as they are. Left overs are great, just place them in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Can be reheated to crispy perfection in the oven or in a toaster!

For Reals English Muffins

So the mister wants to know…"Why would anyone ever buy those crappy english muffins from the store when they could be eating these?"

Good question…And we will all answer…."Never again! Because I now make the sickest E.M.s around.!"(E.M.s is the cool short way to say english muffins and now that you are going to make your own….man, your so cool!)

These E.M.s are perfect. Easy to make, not overly fussy, and you end up with a super yummy, extremely versatile, individually portion super sweet little disk of bread. And the best part is..nooks and crannies! I think that is why I decided to make these E.M.s,  so Nick and I can talk the about nooks and crannies…(Sometimes we need light conversation)

 

We start with flour and salt whisked together in a bowl. The honey, yeast and warm water are getting on proofing in a jar. An egg waiting to be cracked, some milk, and 2 tablespoons of butter. All this good stuff equals…nooks and crannies!

Oh you like my nifty dough whisk….me too, I use it all the time. Maybe I should have a dough whisk give away  ……maybe…..

Everything all mixed together, dumped onto a floured surface and kneaded for 10 minutes by hand…..If you have a stand mixer, you can use it if you want, but you are missing out on the fun of doing it by hand….

When the dough has been sufficiently kneaded, gather dough into a nice ball, coat with a little oil and place back into bowl. Cover with a towel and stick in a warm place to rise for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.

When dough has doubled, punch down and plop out onto floured surface. Dust the bottom of a griddle or in my case, two cast iron pans, with corn meal. Divide dough into 8-10 equal balls and smash into 2 inch thick disks. 

Place on griddle or pans and sprinkle more corn meal on top of each E.M. Cover and let rise for another 15 minute. 

Now the E.M.s  have rested, turn the griddle (or pans) on to low heat. Once your griddle (or pans) gets hot, continue to cook that side for another 7-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip and cook other side for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Once browned, check for doneness with a thermometer. The inside should reach 200 degrees.( if you don't have a thermometer, fork split one open and check…. you are going to eat it anyway) If the outside cooked faster then the inside, no worries, just pop them into the oven at 350 for 8-10 minutes. I had to pop mine into the oven for to cook completely.

 Remove form griddle, let cool a bit, and ……Fresh, fluffy fat, fantastic….Everything and more that a real english muffin should be. Split open with a fork and……. the nooks and crannies! So spot on.  Serve with anything your heart desires…I served these with whipped honey butter…. and eat the only kind of E.M. you will ever again eat. Grocery store english muffins be damned!

Enjoy and Happy Tuesday!

-C

English Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 1/2  cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoon butter at room temperature
• 1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• cornmeal for pan

Combine warm water, honey and yeast in a bowl to active..about 5-10 minutes or until yeast is foamy.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Mix in butter(I use my fingers) When yeast mixture is done proofing, whisk together mixture with the egg and milk. Add wet  to dry and mix until just incorporated  Dump out onto floured surface and knead dough for 8 minutes, adding a bit of flour whenever dough starts to get too sticky.  Roll into a ball, coat with oil and place back into bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 60 minutes or until sought has doubled in size.

Once the first rise is done, deflate dough and divide into 8 equal pieces(10 for a slightly smaller muffin).  Smoosh each ball into a flat disk, about 2 inches thick) and place on a cold cornmeal dusted cast iron griddle. (I used 2 cast iron pans) Sprinkle tops of muffins with more corn meal and let dough rest for another 15 minted.  Turn burners on low heat. Let griddle get hot and continue to cook the muffins for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and cook opposite side until gold brown and remove from griddle. To make sure the muffins are cooked completely, stick an instant read thermometer into the center…it should read 200 degrees. (if you don't have a thermometer, split one open… the tester E.M.)  If the E.M.s are not completely cook, just stick in the oven on 350 for 5-10 minutes or until cooked throughout.

Remove and let cool.  To serve, split open with a fork and give a light toast. Spread with butter, jam, peanuts butter, anything you want…maybe  make E.M pizzas!