This bread is moist, crusty, and tastes of the essence of corn. Rush this bread from oven to table. It begins to dry out almost at once.
Position a rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450┬░F. Place in a heavy 9-inch skillet, preferably cast-iron, or less desirably, an 8 x 8-inch glass baking pan:
1 tablespoon bacon fat, or lard, or vegetable shortening
Whisk together thoroughly in a large bowl:
1 3/4 cups stone-ground cornmeal, preferably white
1 tablespoon sugar (optional)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt (3/4 of amount if using buttermilk with salt)
Whisk until foamy in another bowl:
2 large eggs
Whisk in:
2 cups buttermilk
1 to 2 fresh jalape├▒o peppers, seeded or unseeded and minced, or 3 to 4 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, drained, stemmed, seeded, and minced or pureed
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk just until blended. Sprinkle over the batter and fold in:
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese or Monterey Jack cheese (optional)
Place the skillet or pan in the oven and heat until the fat smokes. Pour in the batter all at once. Bake until the top is browned and the center feels firm when pressed, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve immediately from the pan, cut in wedges or squares, with:
Butter
Leftovers, though dry, are nice enough if wrapped in foil and rewarmed in a low oven.
