Savory baking
Hot Honey Jalapeño Kefir Cornbread
Tender kefir cornbread balances sweet honey with fresh jalapeño heat. Serve it warm beside chili, grilled meat, soup, or a big salad.
Make it
Method
- Heat the oven to 200°C. Grease a 23 cm square pan.
- Whisk the cornmeal mix and baking soda in a large bowl.
- Whisk the eggs, kefir, hot honey, and cooled butter in another bowl.
- Fold wet into dry with the jalapeño just until no dry pockets remain.
- Bake for 22 to 26 minutes, until golden and a skewer has no wet batter. Rest 10 minutes before cutting.
Check the mix before adding liquid
The self-rising cornmeal mix supplies part of the structure and raising agents; kefir supplies liquid and acidity. Brands differ, so the batter and baked crumb may differ too. Honey and jalapeño provide the sweet and hot flavours without establishing how a particular mix will bake.
Cool, cover and chill
Let steam escape on a rack, then refrigerate in a covered container within two hours, or one hour above 32°C. Use within three days or freeze individual portions.
Check the cornmeal packet
self-rising cornmeal mix
- Self-rising
- Raising agents are already included.
- Cornmeal mix
- A cornmeal-based blend; it may also contain wheat flour and salt.
Plain cornmeal and cornstarch cannot replace this mix directly.
See one manufacturer’s ingredient listOrdinary honey can replace hot honey; remove the jalapeño’s inner ribs as well as seeds for less heat. Do not give honey-containing foods to a child under 12 months.
If it crumbles or stays gummy
Let a hot piece rest before judging: cutting straight from the oven can make it break. Crumbling after cooling may also reflect the cornmeal mix, liquid balance or baking. For a wet centre still in the oven, cover the browned top loosely and continue until a skewer has no wet batter. A fully cooled gummy batch is a reason to check the mix and measurements before repeating it, not simply add a fixed number of minutes.