The heart of this skillet cornbread is the use of the cast iron skillet, which allows the cornbread to from a perfectly crispy outer crust.
Summer is here and corn is in season! And what better way to celebrate than with my skillet cornbread, made with crispy prosciutto and fresh kernels of sweet and juicy corn. I love this cornbread for a bunch of reasons, mostly having to do with how easy it is to make and the fact that it incorporates one of my all time favorite foods (prosciutto). But my personal favorite part about this skillet cornbread is the use of the skillet itself; the cornbread batter goes right into a hot cast iron skillet with lots of melted butter, so that it immediately develops a deeply brown and crusty outside – that’s where all the flavor lives.
At the heart and soul of my kitchen are my grandfather’s cast iron skillets, and that’s where the inspiration for this skillet cornbread recipe comes from. You see, I currently live in the house that my grandparents once owned, and my dad and his siblings were raised in. There are so many things that I love about my house, the most important being the memories that it holds for me. There’s the schoolyard across the street where I learned to ride a bike, the backyard where my cousins and I played baseball and bounced on pogo sticks, my now adult bedroom where once upon a time I sat cross-legged on the floor and watched my brother play video games. And then of course there’s the kitchen, where my grandpa “Papa Mike” cooked up everything from frittatas made with fridge leftovers (which my dad still does), to Sunday suppers of gravy with meatballs and sausage over pasta. At the heart of almost all of my grandpa’s cooking was his arsenal of cast iron skillets. Each one, from tiny to huge, was perfectly seasoned from years worth of frying bacon, sizzling chicken cutlets, breakfasts of fried eggs and pancakes, and of course lots of sautéed garlic. And since I live in what was once my grandparent’s house, I find myself incredibly lucky to be the heir to Papa Mike’s cast iron skillets, complete with their years worth of built-in flavor.
With my grandfather’s skillets on hand, I take every opportunity to use them to add flavor to any dishes I make. And not only does the cast iron add great flavor to this skillet cornbread recipe, but it is non-stick and it heats super evenly so the cornbread forms that perfect crust the second it hits that pre-heated cast iron. For those of you without your own perfectly aged cast iron skillets, don’t panic! You can pick up a brand new cast iron skillet, and check out this article on how to season cast iron so that its ready for use. In no time you’ll have a skillet thats perfectly seasoned from tons of use, and ready to pass down to your children and grandchildren, just like mine were passed down to me.
The cast iron skillet is the key to this skillet corn bread.
While the crust may be my absolute favorite part of this skillet cornbread recipe, there are honestly a ton of reasons to love it. The cornbread batter itself is a pretty simple one, and you can use mine or even your own if you have a favorite cornbread recipe. The twists on a traditional cornbread come from the fresh kernels and savory prosciutto. The fresh corn adds a great pop of sweetness that reminds me that its finally summer and sweet corn is perfectly in season! Then there’s the prosciutto, crisped up in the skillet first to really concentrate its saltiness, which acts as a perfect balance to the sweet corn. Along with that crunchy crust formed by adding the batter right into the sizzling hot cast iron, this skillet cornbread recipe is one that you surely should not pass up. Serve it as a side along with a hearty lunch or dinner, or even on its own along with jam, cheese, or of course, lots of butter.
But if you take anything away from this recipe and my story, it should be to get out to the store and pick up your own cast iron skillet if you don’t have one already! It will be an indispensable tool in your kitchen, just as it was in my grandfather’s kitchen, and now is in mine.
- 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 1¼ cup cornmeal
- 1 cup flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1⅓ cup buttermilk
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups corn kernels, preferably fresh but you can use canned for frozen whole corn as well
- ¼ lb prosciutto, thinly sliced
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients (cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt) in a large bowl until well combined. Melt 1 stick of the butter - reserve the other stick for greasing the skillet - and whisk the melted butter with the buttermilk and eggs. Slowly add the wet ingredients into to the dry while whisking until a smooth batter is formed. Fold in the kernels of corn.
- Heat the cast iron skillet over medium heat. Cut the prosciutto into ribbons, about ¼ inch wide and 2 inch long. Add the ribbons of prosciutto to the hot skillet and cook, turning frequently, until the prosciutto is slightly crispy, about 3 minutes. Remove the crispy prosciutto and fold into your cornbread batter.
- Add the remaining butter (1 stick) to the skillet over medium heat and allow it to melt, swirling the pan to evenly coat it and ensure the butter doesn’t burn. Pour your cornbread batter into the hot skillet and immediately transfer to the 375°F oven.
- Cook the cornbread for 20-25 minuted in the oven, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow the skillet cornbread to cool about 10 minutes before serving.
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