I’ve made a lot of bad cornbread over the years.
Dry cornbread. Gritty cornbread. Cornbread with no discernible corn flavor at all. Terrible, bitter cornbread that initially led me to believe my cornmeal was rancid, but which I eventually came to blame on my leavening instead.
Finally, after many, many disappointing bouts, I stumbled across a recipe with the boastful title “Perfect cornbread … every time.” The author promised no bitter aftertaste and, well, I couldn’t resist….