Cornmeal Mush- A Recipe That Tastes Much Better Than it Sounds

Cornmeal mush...I wish I could think of a better name for this dish than what it is called but I haven't been able to come up with anything more appealing. It has several different variations including, polenta and grits, but this specific recipe is slightly different than those. 

Anywho...regardless of it's name this dish is so yummy and versatile. It originally came about in the Depression when food was less abundant and plain. My great grandma would make it, which it turned to my grandma making it, then my mother and now me. 

Partly why I love this dish is its simplicity. It is made from only 4 ingredients and comes together quickly and easily. You can eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, brunch or whenever the mood strikes you. I like to eat mine for breakfast with some butter and jam on top. I think it would also be delicious at breakfast if you topped it with some spinach, sliced tomato and a poached egg. For dinner you can serve your favorite bolognese sauce over it instead of using pasta, the options are endless. It is naturally gluten free and can also be made vegan so it is a winning dish for everyone.  Follow the simple steps below and you will have yourself a new favorite recipe in minutes!

Ingredients:

1 C. Cornmeal
2 C. Water
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. butter (substitute Earthbalance or other spread if you are making it vegan)
1 tsp. sugar

The most important thing to remember in this recipe is your ratio of cornmeal to water, the rest is totally up to your taste. Your ratio should be 2:1, water to cornmeal, so you should always have twice as much water as you do cornmeal, easy peasy. 



Bring your water to a boil and then slowly pour in your cornmeal while quickly whisking to avoid clumping. Add salt, butter and sugar and continue to whisk and cook over low heat until cornmeal mixture has thickened, it should be the consistency of oatmeal. Remove from heat. At this point you can eat it as is, it will be kind of like eating cream of wheat cereal OR how I have always had it, though it requires a few more steps.




Line two small loaf pans or one normal size loaf pan, with saran wrap. Next pour the cornmeal mush into the two pans and cover the top with saran wrap. Place in your refrigerator overnight or if you want to eat it right away, like I usually do, place it in the freezer for an 30-45 minutes. Magically the corn meal mush turns into a solid once it has cooled!


Heat a griddle on the stove to medium heat. While your pan is heating remove the loaf from the pan and cut into slices. 


Once your pan is nice and toasty, melt some butter to prevent sticking and to add a nice crust to your cornmeal. Place slices onto griddle and let cook for 4-6 minutes on each side, until they have a nice golden color. Flip and repeat on the other side. 



Top with whatever flavor combination you want or even eat it plain! Enjoy!


More Doing, Less Dreaming

From a very young age I have always enjoyed creating. From sewing clothes, to baking cookies to rearranging my room, you name it, I did it. In college, I majored in Interior Design and Housing Studies, with big dreams of living in the city, designing swanky homes. Reality sunk in once I graduated at the height of the housing recession, meaning, little to no jobs for anyone graduating in my career field. I was able to land a job related to my field but it really was not what I loved. Two years down the road I could not take the cubicle lifestyle anymore and decided to quit (I hate saying that) shortly before my wedding. I figured once the wedding was over I would take some time and find a job that really suited me. A week after I got back from our honeymoon I received an unexpected job offer for a job I never even applied for, that I ended up accepting. Although I have always had “good” jobs, they have all left me with a creative void.
Throughout the years I have constantly found myself day dreaming about working from home, being my own boss and creating lovely pieces for others, however, I was always too afraid to take the next step. One day, while I was feeling particularly uninspired, reading blogs about women my age who were turning their dreams into a reality I finally decided to take the plunge and go for it! After 5 years of dreaming, and not so much doing, Katie Michelle Designs finally was created.

I have a wide range of tastes and interests, which you will also see reflected in my pieces and on my blog. I hope what I share will bring some joy and or inspiration into your daily living. Make sure to follow along on social media to see when new items are added to my Etsy shop, sales and what I am creating next! Thank you for joining me on this journey, I can't wait to see where it goes! Feel free to email whenever you'd like, I would love to hear from you!

heart,
k