Sour Cream Corn Bread

My Southern born husband loves this corn bread.  The key is the whole cup of sour cream that gives it a moist, tender crumb. This is not Yankee corn bread, with a sweet and cakelike texture, and it is not Southern corn bread that has virtually no floor or sugar and winds up being being grainy and crumbly. I got this recipe from the out of print Mennonite Community Cookbook. If you want to gild the lily, get your hands on toasted corn meal. The Fair Food Farmstand at Reading Terminal Market usually carries this flavorful Lancaster County version of cornmeal.

Sour Cream Corn Bread

3/4 cup corn meal
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg, well beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk

Combine flour and corn meal.  If you have toasted corn meal, use half regular corn meal and half toasted corn meal. Add baking soda, cream of tartar (if using), salt, and sugar.

Add beaten egg, sour cream, milk and melted butter. Whisk together and pour into a greased 9-inch square pan, or a 9-inch pie pan. Bake at 425˚ for 20 minutes or until nicely browned.

Corn bread makes a perfect sidekick or foundation to chili.