Mom’s Cornbread

Mmm, there’s just nothing like fresh homemade cornbread, is there? I love how it combines the sweet with the savoury, and the cornmeal (polenta to you Aussies) adds such wonderful texture to a fluffy body. Once I left for uni and my homemade chilli became a dietary staple, I tried several different cornbread recipes to accompany it—unfortunately, no cornbread recipe I’ve tried has ever really compared to this one. Either it’s just that this is what my mom always made and it is therefore what I know and love, or it really is as amazing as I thought it was.

One thing’s for sure—the rate at which it disappeared the last time I made it sure said something as to its deliciousness. I recommend slicing it into twelve squares instead of nine, else you’ll find yourself lacking cornbread all too quickly!

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Edited: January 7th, 2011

Dathipa’s Sweet & Sour Chicken

At my previous job in Sydney, I had the extreme good fortune of working in a multi-cultural store, and every day something new would come up about someone’s home—I guess standing around at the registers on a quiet day makes for good conversation! If you were really lucky, you’d walk into the tea room just in time to smell someone’s amazing home made lunch, and if you were even more lucky, you’d be able to wrangle the recipe from them.

This recipe therefore comes to you courtesy of Dathipa (aka Pins), who was very gracious to write it down for me! Though perhaps she was just trying to make me stop drooling over her lunch. Heh heh heh. It happens, guys! Pins is Thai, so you can even call this an authentic Thai sweet & sour dish. Enjoy!

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Edited: October 27th, 2010

Chilled Corn & Bean Salad with Chicken

This chilled corn and bean salad with chicken is a result of one of those nights when you have some stuff in your fridge and it just kind of sits there and stares at you, and you know that you have to eat some of it but you aren’t sure what, how, or why. You wouldn’t think that this is a problem that I face frequently, but it happens more often than I enjoy. However, once you hone in on a couple ingredients and skim through a cookbook or two (or ten), some really yummy dishes can result!

If you’re stuck for dinner one night or want a recipe that’s pretty fail-safe, give this a go! It’s pretty quick and cost effective besides.

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Edited: September 22nd, 2010

A-maize-ing Corn Bread

My photographer friend, Brandon, says that the best way to photograph food is by a window–in the daytime. Unfortunately, the only time I have to cook these days is the nighttime, after work and in a hurry. As a result, I don’t have any nice photographs to show you of my cornbread muffins because they’re lit by a kitchen light and an unjust shade of yellow. But, I do have a recipe here that’s guaranteed delicious, low-fat, and can be whipped up even if you’re feeling positively narcoleptic after a day’s work.

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Edited: February 10th, 2010