Classic Cornbread

Considering I put hot chillies and / or Jalapenos in pretty much everything, my regular readers might be surprised to learn that my favourite cornbread consists of little more than cornmeal. But my regular readers will also know that I'm a huge fan of cornmeal and this dense and filling bread will satisfy any cornmeal craving. For a satisfying snack, serve with a bit of butter. It also goes well with any spicy meal.

Cornbread

3 cups of cornmeal
1 cup of flour
1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
3 tablespoons of sesame oil or olive oil
1/4 - 1/2 cup of natural sweetener, such as rapadura sugar or barley malt - you can also use brown or white sugar if desired
2 - 3 cups of water

Grease a loaf pan with butter or oil and set aside.

Combine the cornmeal, flour and salt in a large bowl. If you are using a dry sweetener, mix in to the dry ingredients. Next, add the oil and sift in with your hands. If you are using a liquid sweetener, add it now and stir to combine. Gradually stir in the water until the mixture resembles a thick cookie dough.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Heat the prepared pan until hot but not smoking. Transfer the batter to the pan, and bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Increase the heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 50 - 60 minutes, until the bread begins to brown and small cracks form on the top of the loaf. Remove the bread from the oven, cool on a metal rack for about 10 minutes and then remove the loaf from the pan. Cool for another 30 minutes on the rack before serving.