The downstairs apartment is apparently undergoing renovation, so as I write this, my floors and walls are shuddering from all the banging, thumping, and mysterious mechanical sounds that make me think maybe a Transformer is trying to build boat with its fists in good ol’ #203. Good grief.

Anyway, that has nothing to do with cornbread. I don’t even have a clever segue planned. Speaking of boats… No. Nothing of the sort.

But cornbread! You’d think having grown up in Texas that I’d wax poetic about how Southern cornbread is unbeatable and that these Northerners just don’t get it right, and et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. But you’d be wrong. I grew up eating a lot of the stuff when I lived in Houston, and I loved it then as much as I love it now. But up until recently, the best cornbread I have ever had was from a barbecue joint in Seattle. I mean, the actual barbecue was… not exciting. But the cornbread! Holy shit!

And now that experience has been dethroned by the little slices of cornbread heaven I had in… Vancouver, Canada. I know. But I had another Texan with me and we both agreed that this was the best cornbread, A+ cornbread, 5 stars, 10 thumbs up. So obviously, this is now a true fact: delicious cornbread can be found anywhere. Even in your own home!

Sorry, that was a clunky transition.

I think to make ideal cornbread, you need to do it in a cast iron pan. Cornbread made in a skillet just always seems to have a better crumb and precisely the correct kind of slightly-fried crust only really good cornbread has. Just take my word on this. Plus, you’ll feel real country strong pulling that fragrant, golden batch of cornbread from your oven in a heavy skillet. In fact, I’m pretty sure handling a cast iron pan is included in Jillian Michaels’ 30 Day Shred.

My cornbread preference is for it to be fluffy and a little bit sweet, but still very savory. So here it is! If you prefer yours less sweet, just don’t include any of the honey and kick up the buttermilk by 1/4 cup.

Sweet Honey Skillet Cornbread
Adapted from Alex Guarnaschelli’s recipe

Yield: 1 9″ round of cornbread (about 14 slices)
Total Time: 35 minutes

• 1 1/4 cup coarse ground cornmeal (225 g)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (100 g)
• 1/4 cup sugar (50 g)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 tbs honey
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 8 tbs butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425* F and throw your skillet in there to warm up while you prep the batter.

In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda (all the dry ingredients).

In that same bowl, whisk in the eggs, whole milk, buttermilk, and honey. Then, slowly whisk in most of the melted butter (reserve about 1 tbs) until it’s all combined.

Take the pan out of the oven and turn it down to 375* F. Coat the bottom and sides of the pan with the reserved butter using a pastry brush. Pour in the batter. You’ll see it immediately begin to cook — this is good! It’ll help make a nice crispy crust on your cornbread.

Carefully put the skillet back into the oven and bake in the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, or until it’s golden brown all around and a cake tester comes out clean.

Let it cool for at least 15 minutes on a wire rack before handling it, though keep in mind your skillet will remain hot for a while so don’t accidentally burn yourself! I like to keep a potholder on the handle to remind myself to be wary until it is completely cool.

Serve warm or at room temperature, alone or with your preferred cornbread accompaniments.