Mississippi Crackling Corn Bread (1972)

• 1/4 lb cracklings (about 1 cup)
• 1/3 cup sifted flour
• 1 1/2 cups sifted white corn meal
• 1 tspn baking soda
• 1/2 tspn salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups regular milk
• 3 tbspns bacon drippings, lard, or butter

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Place the cracklings in an overproof skillet and bake about 15 minutes. Drain and reserve the cracklings.

3. Sift the flour, corn meal, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Beat the eggs until they are foamy and stir into the buttermilk and half the regular milk. Stir this into the corn meal mixture. Stir in the drained cracklings.

4. Place the bacon drippings, lard, or butter in a 9-inch heavy skillet and heat it on top of the stove. The bacon drippings should be quite hot but not brown. Pour the corn bread mixture into the skillet. Very carefully our the remaining cup of milk over the top of the corn bread mixture. Do not stir. Bake 50 minutes.

Yield: 8 servings

(Note -" Cracklings are rendered pork skins and are much richer than the fried pork skins sold commercially, at least outside the South.")

More "Lost" Corn Bread Recipes

Louisiana Corn Meal Rolls (1967)

Abraham Lincoln's Egg Corn Bread (1860)

(Origin - "The New York Times Southern Heritage Cookbook" by Jean Hewitt, 1972.)