Chef Martin Anderson
It’s Friday folks and we will nearly have completed our sell out run of Jesus Christ superstar.
Watching the Last Supper scene every night I wondered what was the staple food during those times?
I did a wee bit of research and as well as the wine & fishes it was very obvious that bread was a very important part of the diet. Workers were paid in bread & beer during the Roman era as well as the odd piece of silver too, as judas discovered.
They used wheat flour and barely flour to make the bread it was cheap to produce and easy to use .
Although the word corn is mentioned in the bible also and it is hinted that it was used in the bread making, some people dispute the fact that it was the same corn that we use today as they think it may have been introduced to the area after the discovery of the Americas. I’m not going to get too upset if it wasn’t either ways .
But on to the recipe.
Did you ever wonder what they use sometimes to stop pizza bases from sticking? Have you ever seen the word grits on a menu from America? Have you ever wondered what to feed chickens?
You’ve seen posh TV Chefs cook polenta but do you know what it is? It’s very simple – it’s all Cornmeal, Indian meal,ground maize or polenta, all these are the exact same thing but just ground finer, all from corn.
Indian meal was the traditional grain used to feed chickens . It can be bought in large bags but remember this is milled for chicken feed and not suitable for human consumption !
It is produced in a completely different environment so best to go to a health food shop or asain style food shop.
Polenta is a finer ground version , cooked in water , seasoned with butter and olive oil to give it a fantastic flavour and sticky consistency.
Some chefs cook this in large batches, allow it to cool on trays and then slice it and fry for a second time, so tasty.
A finer ground version is also used to make grits , an American breakfast style dish usually served with crisp bacon , biscuits ( American plain scones ) and gravy , again an American style sauce made from milk thickened with a roux made from beef lard and flour .
The type of corn meal for this recipe is the finest ground version , ideal for making breads & dusting pizza bases or any type of pastry , it does give a yellow colour but it’s so tasty .
As it is made from corn it’s ideal for coeliacs as well .
I’ve made this recipe several times and although I’m not a fan of yogurt it does work well and give a distinctive flavour.
Today’s recipe combines the corn bread with another favourite of mine , Baked Bananas , these are so easy to make and great fun to see , when you take them out of the oven the skin will be completely blackened , they will look burnt but inside the banana will be cooked perfectly.
The sauce is simple too, be carful when heating it though don’t burn the honey or yourself.
This dish is an ideal dessert , hot breakfast treat as you can heat the corm bread up.
You make take it with you to work ( without the hot bananas ) it’s a great lunch box option.
The corn bread is a great snack , served with soup or even along with a stew .
Enjoy your baking and keep an eye on them there bananas !!
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Corn and yogurt bread.
Cornbread
You will need.
300g of corn meal/Indian meal.
100g of plain gluten
I tbs of sugar or liquid honey .
1 egg beaten.
2 tsp of baking powder.
600mls of fat free yogurt.
Method.
Pre-heat your oven to 200c
Sieve the baking powder and the flour together.
Add the corn meal and sugar
Beat the egg and yogurt together and add to the dry mix, blend well and pour into a lined oven proof dish.
Bake until risen and golden, approximately 30 minutes.
Cut into squares, cool and serve.
If serving with the bananas keep it warm or you can heat the squares up in the oven again.
Baked bananas.
You will need.
Bananas , allow one per person with the skin on !!
2 tbs of Honey per person
Pinch of Cinnamon.
Method.
Heat your oven to 180c.
Place your bananas onto a tray and cook for 20 minutes.
Heat your honey in a pot with a little cinnamon .
When the bananas are cooked, open the skin and scoop out the banana onto your corn bread square , pour over the honey and enjoy
