New Black Pepper Corn Bread - Hearty and Delicious
By. Eldon Beard
This hearty and dense corn bread is delicious when served with chili, stew, or soup. Enjoy with any meal where a spicy (but not overpowering) bread is desirable.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal, divided
1 1/2 teaspoon gourmet black pepper
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 cup boiling water
1 package fast rising yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup hot water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 cups bread flour, divided
How to make hearty black pepper corn bread:
1) Mix one cup of the cornmeal, pepper, seasoning salt, and onion powder with the boiling water until well blended and smooth. Let the mixture cool to 120 F (about ten minutes).
2) Mix in yeast, sugar, the 1/4 cup hot water, and olive oil. Add one cup of the bread flour and mix until smooth and elastic, which should take about five minutes. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place (free of drafts) until risen and puffy (about 45 minutes).
3) Grease a nine-inch glass pie plate with vegetable oil.
4) Knead more bread flour in until the mix is not sticky. Continue kneading on floured surface until smooth and elastic (about five minutes of kneading). Shape into a ball. Place in the plate and flatten out to fill the bottom. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, which should take about 50 minutes or so.
5) Score the top of the bread in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Bake at 350 F or 180 C for 35 to 45 minutes, or until bread is light brown and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the plate and serve warm.
Makes one pan, about ten servings.
Nutritional Information Per Serving:
180 calories
5 grams protein
36 grams carbohydrates
2 grams fat
0 grams saturated fat
0 mg cholesterol
110 mg sodium
3 grams dietary fiber
Brief History of Cornbread
Native Americans were using ground corn for cooking long before Europeans arrived in North America. They mastered the skill of drying and grinding corn into corn meal, which is the basic component of cornbread. Corn was sacred to the Mayans, Aztecs and Incas. European explorers, faced with feeding themselves with whatever was available locally, fashioned cornmeal into cornbread. Cornbread was very popular during the Civil War because it was cheap to make, and could be made in many different ways. Being thin and flat as prepared, it was ideal for transporting over long distances, and could provide significant nutritional value without a lot of bulk and weight.
Popular types of cornbread today include skillet baked cornbread ((grease is heated in a skillet and the batter is poured directly into the hot grease before baking), corn pone (baked or fried in butter or grease), johnnycakes (a pancake-like cornbread), and hush puppies (deep fried and popular with seafood dishes).
Tastes in cornbread vary by region. In the United States, northern and southern cornbreads are different. Northern cooks often prefer yellow corn meal, and a finished bread that is sweetened with sugar or molasses. Southern cooks often prefer white corn meal, and a more salty taste. In the southwest, a spicy jalapeno cornbread prepared with corn kernels and shredded cheese is popular.
http://www.streetdirectory.com/food_editorials/pastry/bread/two_sweet_bread_recipes.html
Whether you are looking for a delicious bread to serve your family, take to a pitch-in, share with co-workers, or serve at a shower, tea, or coffee klatch, here are a couple of recipes that are not only tasty but also suitable for the diabetics in the group.
MOM’S APPLESAUCE BREAD
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Equal Sugar-Lite
3 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups no-sugar-added applesauce
1/4 cup egg substitute
2 tbsp light olive oil or canola oil
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans, optional
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, Equal, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Beat egg into applesauce and add to dry ingredients. Add oil and mix well. Stir in nuts, if desired. Pour batter into a greased and lightly floured loaf pan or use a non-stick cooking spray. Bake approximately one hour until golden brown.
PUMPKIN LOAF WITH RAISINS AND WALNUTS
1/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1 tbsp nonfat sour cream
2 cups canned pumpkin
3/4 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup canola oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup Splenda Granular
4 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spices
1 cup raisins
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 nine-inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, blend yogurt, sour cream, pumpkin, egg substitute and oil together. Add flour, Splenda, baking powder and pumpkin pie spices. Stir all together, scraping sides of bowl. Mix in raisins and walnuts. Divide the batter evenly and spread into the prepared pans. Bake approximately 45 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center of loaves comes out clean. Cool sligthly in pan then remove from pan and finish cooling on a wire rack.
NOTE: 1/8 of a loaf equals 8 grams of sugar, 28 grams of carbs and 5 grams of protein