On Sun, 4 Jul 2010 23:58:09 -0400 in rec.food.cooking, "Felice"
> wrote,
>I found two recipes recently, including the Hotel Roanoke one, that call for
>simply adding boiling water to the cornmeal and then adding the rest of the

When a recipe calls for adding boiling water to cornmeal do this:

Put the cornmeal in a medium size mixing bowl. Push the cornmeal to the
sides, forming a well in the center. When your water reaches a vigorous
rolling boil, pour it all at once into the center of the bowl and begin
stirring immediately. Stir from the center first, and keep
incorporating more dry cornmeal from the edges until evenly mixed,
quickly before it cools much. Easier than it probably sounds.

As my grandmother said, "You have to get a good scald on it."