Your Dad's Corn Bread

Now you have the required skillet, this should be easy.

1 egg
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 cups regular, cornmeal (unsifted). You can use regular cornmeal. But I bet you could also score some stone ground cornmeal at that fancy Whole Foods across the street. Either way, it'll be good.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Gather flour, soda, baking powder, sugar and cornmeal in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat egg with fork ; stir in the buttermilk and butter. Stir in remaining ingredients until well-blended. Don't beat 'em to death. Pour immediately into a hot pan. See Note. Bake 20-25 minutes. Serve piping hot. (You could probably also get some very passable apple butter at Whole Foods, too. )

NOTE: One of the secrets of good crusty corn bread is to melt some butter -- I'd say a couple of tablespoons -- (until it sizzles) in the pan in which the corn bread is to be baked. This also greases the pan. Your dad always sticks the pan into the hot oven while he does the mixing. Then when you bring it back out and throw the butter in it melts right away. Be careful. Duh. Pan will be super hot. Duh Duh.