Quick Breads, Morning and Evening

September 8 - What is your favorite, "go to" cooking recipe?

Recipes wax and wane in my appreciation, depending on my mood and/or pocketbook. There was a time when I didn't think much about buying fresh seafood from the market and whipping it up "Southern Style" (that means fried) for dinner. Of course, that was when I lived on the coast, and it was before we had kids. Now, I'm too broke and too far away from the coast to have fresh seafood. It is still my favorite feast though whenever we do get down to the Gulf.

Now, I'm more likely to turn to a pot of beans served up with homemade cornbread for a go-to meal. My cornbread recipe is an adaptation of the one that's on the blue-and-yellow box of corn meal. But it works at 5000 feet elevation. Here is the recipe as I shared it with my daughter.

Anna's Favorite Cornbread

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare an 8x8 inch pan with cooking spray and set aside.
In large mixing bowl, mix

• 1 1/4 cup whole wheat or unbleached flour
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 Tbsp sugar

In 2-cup measuring cup, mix thoroughly

• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• Add milk to the 2-cup line and mix.

Add liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well with fork; do not beat with mixer or bread will be tough. Break up large lumps with fork.Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 18-20 mins, until knife inserted into center of bread comes out clean.

This recipe works for almost all "quick breads". Make delicious muffins by substituting oats, bran, cereal, etc., for the cornmeal. Add nuts, fruit, applesauce, etc. Bake in prepared muffin tins for 15-18 mins, or in loaf pan 45-55 mins.

For example:

• 2 cups flour
• 2-3 small ripe bananas, mashed well
• 1/4 cup pecans, broken
• cinnamon

or

• 1 1/2 cup flour with 1/2 cup oats
• 1 cup blueberries

or

• 1 1/2 cup flour with 1/2 cup bran
• 1 cup raisins
• brown sugar instead of white, or honey instead of sugar (mix with liquid ingredients)

There have been many mornings when muffins and milk were our breakfast. I like to use buttermilk or yogurt too, in place of the milk, just remember to replace the baking powder with half a teaspoon of baking soda.