3 c's

When buying a diamond the 3 c's are cut, clarity and color, but for comfort on a nippy day the 3 c's just might be chili, cole slaw and cornbread.

Yesterday it rained off and on all day long. Thankfully the weather gave me a break this morning to get out to the grocery store. There was a bit of a nip in the air after the rain and I thought chili would be a nice comfort food. I used the Hawaiian Chili by Max packet, which I've used before and posted about here.

I made cole slaw just because I had an old carrot and some cabbage in the fridge. I added sliced apples and a handful of raisins because that is how my mom usually makes her cole slaw. I also added 2 dollops of plain yogurt and a couple squirts of mayo. Oh, and quite a bit of freshly ground pepper.

I have been wanting to make cornbread after seeing this post, on Blue Lotus.

So, I followed a recipe in this book, but I think the type of cornmeal I used wasn't fine enough, so these muffins came out a bit hard to eat, in fact, I wouldn't recommend them for anyone with teeth problems... Or maybe it was because I made them as muffins and not in a pan. Anyway, here's the recipe if you'd like to try for yourself.

Cornbread : makes 1 loaf from "The Essential Baking Cookbook"
1 cup (125g/4 oz) self-rising flour
1 cup (150g/5 oz) fine cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup (250ml/8 oz) buttermilk
1/4 cup (60ml/2 fl oz) oil

1. Preheat the oven to hot 220C (425F/Gas 7). Generously grease a 20 cm (8 in) cast iron frying pan with an ovenproof or screw off handle, or round cake tin, with oil. Place in the oven to heat while making the batter.

2. Sift the flour into a bowl, add the cornmeal and salt and make a well in the center. Whisk together the egg, buttermilk and oil, add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overbeat.

3. Pour into the hot cast iron pan or cake tin and bake for 25 minutes or until firm to the touch and golden brown. Serve, cut into wedges, warm or at room temperature.

Despite the corn bread failure, everything else was great! I'll have to try the corn bread recipe again another time.