In my intro, I mentioned that it’s essential to follow the recipe to the T; let me explain. I recently tried to make cornbread from MHMH’s (Mother Hen Mad Hatter) recipe. It says to use room temp eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter. I found out the reason for that.
I happily melted the butter, just enough to liquefy it, added the eggs (cold), the buttermilk (cold), and the baking soda, and mixed my happy little heart out…. Then straight panic!!! It looked curdled! I could not figure out what I did! So I did what any other rational person would do: I called “mom,” lol!
“Kimmy, help! I am making cornbread, and it looks awful! What did I do wrong?” I said. She laughed and asked what it looked like, so I video-called her because I could not explain what it looked like without saying it looked like vomit, lol! She took one look and knew exactly where I went wrong. She said, “Did you use cold eggs and buttermilk?” “Ummm, yeeesss.” I said with some hesitation. Laughing so hard she is almost crying, she says, “May, that is why you use room-temperature ingredients!” The cold eggs and buttermilk have solidified the butter, and that is why it looked so terrible. We had a good laugh, as we do when I turn the oven on to make any damn thing! LOL!
My part in the outfit is to let you know that it's okay to be any age and still not know or struggle to do basic tasks and that it is okay to laugh at yourself! Trust me, that was not the first time, and it won’t be the last story I tell you about my struggles with baking and or really any daily tasks. I hope to make you laugh and encourage you to do things out of your comfort zone. Feel free to share your flops, flips, and happy little accidents.
Hot Mess Mad Hatter (HMMH)
1 Cup Cheddar Cheese (if desired)
Melt butter, (ROOM TEMP) eggs, (ROOM TEMP) buttermilk, and baking soda combined. Add cornmeal, flour, salt, and cheese and mix until well blended. Pour in a greased 8x8 pan. I use a cast iron skillet, heat it in the oven with a tablespoon of butter, and bake for 30-40 minutes at 375 degrees.
Enjoy!!!
