Buttermilk Spoon
Bread Recipe
Ingredients :
3 tablespoons
unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for greasing dish
2 cups whole milk
1 cup whole
buttermilk
1 cup finely
ground white cornmeal
2 teaspoons
chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons
kosher salt
1/2 teaspoons
black pepper
3 large eggs,
separated
Step 1
Preheat oven to
350°F. Generously grease a 2-quart casserole dish with butter. Heat milk and
buttermilk in a medium-size heavy saucepan over medium until steaming but not
boiling. (Look for small bubbles forming around edges of saucepan.) Gradually
pour cornmeal into milk mixture in a slow, steady stream, whisking or stirring
with a large spoon. (Scrape sides of saucepan as you whisk to prevent lumps
from forming.) Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring often, until cornmeal
dissolves completely and mixture thickens, 10 to 12 minutes.
Step 2
Remove cornmeal
mixture from heat. Add butter, chopped thyme, salt, and pepper, stirring until
butter melts and mixture is combined. Let stand 10 minutes.
Step 3
Place egg yolks
in a medium bowl. Stir in 2 cups of the cornmeal mixture until combined.
Transfer cornmeal-egg yolk mixture to remaining cornmeal mixture in saucepan,
stirring quickly until combined. (Mixture may still look a little grainy or
lumpy.)
Step 4
Beat egg whites
in a medium bowl with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on
medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 1 1/2 minutes. Gently fold egg
whites into cornmeal mixture using a spatula or large spoon until mixture
becomes a smooth batter with no streaks remaining.
Step 5
Spoon batter into
prepared casserole dish. Bake in preheated oven until spoon bread is puffed up,
firm, and lightly browned, 35 to 40 minutes. (Note that spoon bread will
initially puff up to great heights but then deflate within minutes of leaving
the oven.) Serve hot or warm.