My Everyday Cornbread

From the Joy of Cooking, this cornbread is a bit moister than regular Southern cornbread and has just a touch of sweetness.

Two slices good quality bacon, chopped

1 T bacon fat or vegetable oil
1 3/4 c cornmeal (no flour)
1 T sugar or honey (optional)
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
3/4 t salt
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk

Cook the two slices of chopped bacon in a cast iron skillet. When cooked, remove the bacon from the pan with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, and pour all but a tablespoon of fat from the skillet.

Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Put the skillet into the pre-heating oven.

Whisk all dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, beat the two eggs until foamy, then whisk in the buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together until blended, not too long. Add in most of the bacon bits.

Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and add the batter. It will immediately begin to sizzle. Place the skillet into the oven and cook for twenty minutes total. After ten minutes, sprinkle the remaining bacon on the top of the cornbread. After ten more minutes, give the skillet a shake; if the middle is jiggly, let it cook another five minutes.

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