Lovable Cornbread

Cornbread. You would think that this crumbly quick bread would be a great starter recipe for the novice cook. There aren't that many ingredients and it goes together pretty easily right? Right. Mix, pour, bake, done. Unless you are teenager Megan, in which case you mistake cornstarch for cornmeal.....and you end up with albino cornbread that's bland and rock-like once it cools. My family loves to tell this story. Often. It's one of my many childhood cooking mishaps, which apparently make for good conversation. Anyway, this cornbread is not bland or rock-like. It's good. Really good. Especially if you like your cornbread a little more on the sweet side. This cornbread is also easy to modify and make healthier! My "healthy" changes are in parenthesis.

Golden Sweet Cornbread

adapted from Allrecipes

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 cup white sugar (1/4 cup sugar + 1/4 cup stevia)
• 1 teaspoon + 1 pinch salt
• 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk (skim milk)
• 1/2 cup canola oil (3 Tbs. oil + 5 Tbs. unsweetened applesauce)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Spray or lightly grease a 9 inch round cake pan or muffin tin.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir in egg, milk and canola oil until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes for pan, 15 minutes for muffins, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

And here is my cute little helper, offering silent encouragement.