I’m not a huge fan of super sweet desserts, but I love playing off of subtly-sweet ingredients like corn. Sure, corn may be a vegetable, but it’s still sweet!
Let’s take cornbread and, instead of eating it as a savory side, let’s make it a dessert paired with sweet mascarpone, fresh blueberries and set it all off with floral lavender honey.
Do you have a favorite cornbread recipe already? Great! Use that. Unless it’s some sort of cheddar jalapeño variation — make that some other time. There’s a basic cornbread recipe below. If you’re not too keen on baking, use a boxed recipe OR just buy it already made. So many options…
To top this all off, I used a lovely fragrant lavender honey from our favorite new producer, Viva Leaf Honey. I had the opportunity to meet the owner, Christa, at her new greenhouse location in Elkins Park.
Her mission is to produce accessible, healthful products with traceable origins. Christa grows all her own botanicals and infuses them into locally produced honey.
Trust me, you won’t have to spend much time tracing the origins!
Basic Cornbread Recipe:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup white sugar
1 tsp salt
3 ½ tsp baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
⅓ cup vegetable oil
Viva Leaf Lavender Honey
8 oz Vermont Creamery Mascarpone
– Preheat the oven to 400°F. Use butter or cooking spray to lightly grease an 8×8 cake pan.
– In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir in the egg, milk and vegetable oil until just combined. Pour the batter into a greased pan.
– Bake in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
– After the cornbread has completely cooled, use a bread knife to carefully cut it in half horizontally.
– Use a spatula and spread about half of the mascarpone evenly on the bottom half of the cornbread. Put the top back on and spread the rest of it on the top of the cornbread cake.
– Place it on the plate that you plan to serve it on and top it with fresh blueberries. Go ahead and let them playfully roll off the top onto the plate.
– Right before you’re ready to serve it, drizzle the entire cake with some honey with a great flourish – because everybody loves some honey drippin’ action.
Want to hear more about Viva Leaf? Check out this guest post by Madame Fromage, as she shares pairing tips featuring three Viva Leaf selections, three cheeses, and wine.
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Previously on In the Kitchen with Jackie:
- Black Garlic Shoyu Glazed Kebobs
- Making Pesto with What You’ve Got
- How to Eat Rotisserie Chicken
Show Your Pasta Some Love - French Onion Soup
- Winter Citrus Salad with Yuzu Dressing
- Roasted Sweet & Smoky Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta + Grilled Cheese!
Ottanta al Tartufo Mac & Cheese
Trick or Treat Cheeseboard
Hello! My name is Jackie Botto and I’ve been working with Di Bruno Bros. for almost five years now styling, photographing and sometimes cooking with all the phenomenal ingredients they offer. CHEESE? Yes, mostly cheese. This blog is the space where I’ll share the things I make. No, I am not a professional chef, I’m a home chef! I cook for myself, my family, my friends – and then I take photos of what I make with the hope it inspires you to cook too.Want to share some tips or pairings of your own? Please leave a comment below!
