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Sweet cornmeal biscuits

A few weeks ago, I had a lovely lunch at Dovetail, an Upper West Side restaurant that serves what I would call creative comfort food. The meal was good but the one thing that stood out for me (besides the excellent company) was the bread they served—it was a small, sweet loaf made with cornmeal that was by far the highlight of the meal.

Now, I’ve long said that cornbread made with sugar is no longer bread—it’s cake. That isn’t to say that it’s not delicious, but don’t go serving it alongside a bowl of beans or a plate of greens because sweet cornbread is best saved for dessert. (And I’m not alone in this belief.)

That said, while it doesn’t have a role during the main course, sweet cornbread at the end of the meal can be a wonderful thing. And for some reason I’ve always felt like it’s healthier than your usual dessert, even though with all the sugar and butter involved, it’s certainly not as virtuous as eating, say, an apple.
Sweet cornmeal biscuits | Homesick Texan

But perhaps my feeling goes back to when I was young. Whenever my family went to Luby’s, I was never allowed to get dessert. But I was allowed to get a sweet corn muffin to eat at the end of the meal, which in my mind was just as good if not better than any other dessert I might have chosen.

Dovetail’s sweet cornbread was no different. It would have been out of place paired with chili, but since my main course included French toast, the sweet cornbread was just fine. And while I usually make my cornbread Texas style without sugar, there’s nothing wrong with having a sweet cornbread in your repertoire for either dessert or for pleasing your Yankee friends. Dovetail’s had a soft, creamy texture that definitely made me want to bake it at home, so I asked for the recipe and, surprisingly, they gave it to me.

When I looked at the recipe, I started to laugh. No wonder it was so good—in it was over a cup of sugar and a cup of butter. There weren’t any eggs, so it wasn’t quite cake but instead more like a very sweet cornmeal biscuit. The recipe also called for cheddar cheese, but the amount was so minute that in proportion to the other ingredients, its sharp tangy flavor was lost. Not to mention, this cornbread would be best topped with fruit and cream or slathered in lots of honey—and neither one of those applications are made better with cheese.

Sweet cornmeal biscuits | Homesick Texan
If you like sweet cornbread, you will love this. But even if you agree with me that there should never be sugar in cornbread, you might also enjoy this because, well, it’s not truly cornbread. Instead, think of it as cake or a sweet biscuit. I know I will. And when those springtime strawberries arrive in a few weeks, this cornbread will make a dandy shortbread.

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5 from 1 vote

Sweet cornmeal biscuits

Servings 8
Author Adapted by Lisa Fain from a Dovetail recipe

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup cheddar cheese
  • 2 sticks cold butter, cubed
  • 1 cup buttermilk

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400° F.
  • Mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Work the cheese and butter into the flour mixture with your hands or a pastry blender until it resembles pea-sized crumbs. Add the buttermilk and stir until dough comes together.
  • Chill for one hour. Roll out into 3/4” thickness and cut out desired shapes.
  • Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

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51 Comments

  1. The only kind of cornbread I enjoy is the sweet kind, unless the cornbread is soaking up chili. I like my cornbread just slightly sweet and use honey for my sweetner. It also has the benefit of extending the life of the cornbread for an extra day.

    The hearts, BTW, are way cute!

  2. LOVE cornbread!! Looks amazing. Thanks.

  3. Kylie of Thin Crust, Deep Dish says:

    Lisa,
    I’m going to have to try these. I’ve been on a biscuit kick lately, but I haven’t really been able to find a recipe I love. And I also just got done making some cornmeal cookies, so this sounds like the perfect mix of the two. Thanks so much!
    Take care,
    Kylie

  4. I guess there are still those heavy aluminum (?) cornbread pans in the shape of Texas or Oklahoma. I prefer my Griswolds (cast iron).

    Out in the Van Horn area, I saw a fellow put chopped raw jalapeňos with the buttermilk and aigs in a blendor and use that as the fluid ingredients… made the cornbread appear to be a pale green, but it was extremely good with a bowl of frijoles.

    Ted

  5. Under Anesthesia says:

    Wow, I just found this blog and I am so so happy! I moved to Savannah from Austin, TX about 6 months ago and have been so homesick, mostly for the food! In search of a King Ranch Chicken recipe, I find a blog stockpiled with many delicious foods from my homeland. Hurray! Thank you for providing me with much needed Texas yummies.