Get a big helping of delicious spoonbread
Some recipes and even ingredients have odd names. Prunes are a good example, as well as spinach brownies. It doesn’t encourage salivation or the urge to run into the kitchen. For many who haven’t had it before, spoonbread could fall into the same category.
It certainly isn’t bread in the traditional sense by any stretch of the imagination. And quite frankly, who wants to have to pull out a spoon for a nice big helping of bread?
Nothing about the name seems to match … until you have it for first time. Suddenly, it all comes together and inspires a trip to the pantry to pull out the ingredients.
Even though I see it frequently written as two words, it’s only one word: Spoonbread. Ask any Southerner and they will agree without hesitation. Now that we’ve settled that, let’s look at what it actually is.
Spoonbread is a side dish that typically has a cornmeal base. It has Southern roots, but no one is quite sure where, when or by whom. Because of the cornmeal, it is considered the starch of the meal that mimics bread. And it usually has a pat of butter melting on the top as it is served. That’s where the similarities to bread stop.
The consistency is almost like pudding in many traditional recipes or it can be similar to a souffle. It is baked in a casserole dish rather than in a loaf pan or baking sheet. And since it is baked, the texture is soft, which necessitates the use of a spoon to both serve and eat it.
Old-fashioned recipes have nothing fancy included. It’s milk that’s heated until bubbles line the edges. Then cornmeal is whisked in along with salt and butter as it thickens. After tempering, eggs are added, it’s transferred to a dish and baked until golden brown. Delicious!