Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> On Tue 13 Jan 2009 10:16:20p, MaryL told us...
>
>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> "Chemiker" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>> Well, back to the drawing board. Found 2 cast iron
>>>> corn bread stick molds in the garage, refugees
>>>> from my wife's Daddy's storage shed when he
>>>> died some years ago.
>>>>
>>>> Cleaned them up, and reseasoned. They looked
>>>> pretty good, but the proof was in the making of
>>>> cornbread.
>>>>
>>>> Went to local market and bought a couple of packets
>>>> of yellow CB mix, and made one with whole milk.
>>>>
>>> Your problem was buying cornbread "mix".
>>>
>>> Use butter to grease the molds and then make cornbread from scratch,
>>> not a boxed mix.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>>
>>>
>> Yes, what Jill said. My grandmother used the type of molds you
>> describe, and she used lots of butter on the pans--and she was baking in
>> days before mixes were available, which was probably "a good thing" in
>> that case. Hers came out perfectly every time.
>>
>> MaryL
>>
>>
>
> It's also very important to preheat the mold to sizzling hot before pouring
> in the batter. Actually, Crisco or bacon fat works better without burning.
> The temperature should be quite high.
>
What Wayne said. I always preheat my cast iron in the oven at the
temperature the cornbread is going to be cooked at. I put a little
canola oil in the bottom of the pan, swirl it around, and then start
heating from cold.

In the meantime I am mixing my cornbread up and getting it ready. Once
the oven dings that is ready I pull the pan out, pour in the cornbread
mixture, stick it back in the oven for the time period necessary to cook
through, as proven by a toothpick stuck into the highest point on the
cornbread. If the toothpick comes out clean you're ready to eat.

Learned that from my Mom, who learned to cook in on a wood and/or coal
stove and she learned it from her Mom who learned to cook in a fireplace
in the backwoods of nineteenth century Arkansas.

Using this method has always turned out perfect cornbread for me, moist,
done through and through, and with that fine crust on the bottom.