Corniest Corn Muffins

In September, when we stayed on Cape Cod for a week,

we went to Sandwich for the day

The day included a tour of

Dexter's Grist Mill

This is one of the oldest mill sites existing today.    The mill goes back to the 1640s and lasted until 1881 when it ceased production.

The town of Sandwich bought the mill and in 1962, it was opened to the public.

And it operates today.

Milling corn meal

The start of the milling of the grain,

And a volunteer explains the process

While this volunteer bags the milled corn meal and explains more about the milling process.

Of course, I had to buy a sack of cornmeal

For I like stone ground cornmeal -- it's really the best kind.

And last week, when I had a guest for lunch, I made Dorie Greenspan's Corniest Corn Muffins

A good use of the corn meal, I think

Warm from the oven with plenty of butter to slather on.

We each ate two!

DORIE GREENSPAN'S CORNIEST CORN MUFFINS

1 cup flour

1 cup cornmeal

6 T. sugar

2 1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. baking soda

pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional -- I did add it and it was really good)

1 cup buttermilk

3 T. unsalted butter, melted and coolec

3 T. corn oil

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 cup corn kernels, fresh, frozen or canned (in which case they should be drained and patted dry) (I used Trader Joe's fire roasted corn kernels)

Heat oven to 400.   Butter or spray or line with muffin cups, 12 muffin molds.

Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.    In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, melted butter, oil, egg and yolk.   Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend.    (Batter will be lumpy)    Stir in the corn kernels.    Divide the batter evenly among the muffin molds.

Put the pan into the oven and bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a knife insterted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.   Pull the pan from the oven and carefully lift each muffin out of it's mold and onto a rack to cool.

The muffins are great warm or at room temperature and particularly great split, toasted and slathered with butter or jam or both.

We love quick breads in the winter with soups -- corn muffins, buttermilk muffins, beer breads.   They elevate the simple soup meal into something special!

It's Friday and I'm joining Michael at Rattlebridge Farm for Foodie Friday.