Recipes - Main & Side Dishes

[CellarDweller]

I don't know if I'm sensitive to it but instant m&c is gross. I think I liked it as a kid, though.

same here.  If I want m&c, I will make it from scratch.

with so many good cheeses out there, why eat a powdered one?

[serious crayons]

same here.  If I want m&c, I will make it from scratch.

with so many good cheeses out there, why eat a powdered one?

Right. And it's not super difficult!

[Jeff Wrangler]

True, and the recipe Chuck posted shows off some of the questionable features of British cooking, including the baking of pasta (Why?)

I've never made it myself, but doesn't lasagna go in the oven?

and the addition of a breadcrumb topping (again, why?).

Again I've never made it, but doesn't something au gratin have a breadcrumb topping?

[Jeff Wrangler]

Anyway, anybody got any new recipes they're trying for Thanksgiving?

[Front-Ranger]

I'm trying out a new cornbread stuffing recipe. It begins with making a batch of cornbread, which I made last weekend. Friends and I ate half of it though so I'm making another batch this morning. Here's the recipe:

https://cafedelites.com/easy-buttermilk-cornbread/

You don't have to have buttermilk. You can add a tablespoon of distilled vinegar to a cup of milk, let stand 15 minutes and voila, you have buttermilk. Edited to add: make sure the milk is at room temperature.

Another tip: melt the butter in the pan in the oven and voila, you have a warm,  buttered pan to cook the cornbread in. The cornbread will have a nice crispy outside and a creamy inside that way. Edited to add: If your milk is not room temperature to start, the melted butter may solidify again and you'll have to remelt it and wait for it to cool before you add it to the eggs. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

I'm trying out a new cornbread stuffing recipe. It begins with making a batch of cornbread, which I made last weekend. Friends and I ate half of it though so I'm making another batch this morning. Here's the recipe:

https://cafedelites.com/easy-buttermilk-cornbread/

OMG I love cornbread! (I used to make it, but all I could do was make it from the Jiffy brand cornbread mix.) And I love cornbread stuffing, too!

[Front-Ranger]

I don't think I've ever met a person who didn't like cornbread! I'm using polenta grits from George Washington's gristmill. It has a certain texture that I like very much. The other day when I made it, it was a breeze, but today, wouldn't you know, I had some timing troubles. I had to warm the brown sugar because it had hardened in the cupboard. And the milk didn't turn into buttermilk fast enough because it was too cold. By the time I was ready to add the buttermilk, the brown sugar was starting to harden again and the melted butter had unmelted slightly. But all turned out well.

Here's the recipe for the stuffing: https://www.seriouseats.com/cornbread-stuffing-sausage-sage-recipe

I like the cooking method, which uses a minimum number of pans and bowls. But I added two ingredients, thyme from my garden and sliced mushrooms. I'm holding a small amount back to make an experimental stuffing adding preserved lemon.

[Sason]

I've tried cornbread once, I can't remember if it was in the States or in Canada.
We don't have it here.
Can't say I liked it much, it was way too sweet for my taste.
Had it been served as cake I probably would have liked it more.

[serious crayons]

Can't say I liked it much, it was way too sweet for my taste.
Had it been served as cake I probably would have liked it more.

Not all cornbread is sweet. I'd say the ones intended to appeal to "the masses" mostly are. But I don't add any sweetener when I make it. Which is not often, but still.

I have both polenta and cornbread mixes from Bob's Red Mill. I also have some elote from the grocery deli, which I mix into all kinds of things, and bacon and cheese. I'm not making dressing, but was thinking of making that mixture into muffins. The elote will be a bit of a risk because it has other ingredients, but I like to mix corn kernels into my cornbread. Even frozen corn works -- especially the kind that has been "roasted."

Meanwhile, Chuck included a cornbread recipe on his blog.

Lee, I saw a photo you posted on FB of several of your grandchildren and I was tempted to ask if you would be serving cereal with peaches. 

[Front-Ranger]

Lee, I saw a photo you posted on FB of several of your grandchildren and I was tempted to ask if you would be serving cereal with peaches. 

Is this a Brokie reference? As it happens, I will be bringing spiced peaches (my mother's recipe) and no cereal, but cornbread dressing. I'm seriously thinking of making Chuck's cornbread casserole for later on, maybe during the weekend. It sounds fantastic!