Skillet Cornbread

To accompany the amazing lentils and roasted veggies that my roommate made for our roomie dinner, I made some cornbread. It also accompanied well with that goat cheese that I made the day before! Yummo! This is recipe is so effortless that I could put it all together just on my kitchen table bench. No need for massive space of the entire kitchen space (God forbid!). Really, that was only very convenient for me because my roommate still had dinner goin all over the rest of the kitchen. But I liked how easy it was regardless.

To make:
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons shortening

Now put it together:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.  In a bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking powder and stir together.
2. Measure the buttermilk and milk in a measuring cup and add the egg.  Stir together with a fork.
3. Add the baking soda and stir.
4. Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients.
5. Stir with a fork until just combined.  Do not over stir.
6. In a small bowl, melt 1/4 cup of the shortening in the microwave.
7. Slowly add the melted shortening to the batter, stirring constantly until just combined.
8. In an iron skillet over high heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons shortening.  Pour the batter into the hot skillet and spread to even out the surface. Add a bit of herbs on top if you want (I put some sweet basil).  Cook on the stovetop for 1 minute, then bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.  The edges should be crispy.
9. Slice into lil pie slices and serve it from the skillet if it's not too hot to carry :)