Big Mama’s Hot Water Corn Bread

***What you need***


• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 cups water
apprx 1 tsp of butter
apprx 2 Tbls fried meat grease or bacon drippings or even Crisco (but not Olive Oil!)
• enough cooking oil to cover the bottom of your skillet to almost 1/4 inch up the side.
• a medium-sized mixing spoon (about three times size of a regular soup or place spoon)
• a mixing bowl
• paper towels to drain cooked bread
• a pot to boil the water
****What you do***
• Mix together the cornmeal, salt & sugar in the bowl with a fork. Set aside. This is your "dry mix."
• Put the 2 cups of water in pot and let come to a boil. When water is boiling, stir in the 2 Tblsp of fried meat grease and the tsp of butter & let it all boil again. This is your "hot water mix."
• Get your skillet & cooking oil ready for frying. You are going to want the frying oil hot enough to "pop water."
• Slowly add some of the water mix to the dry mix in the bowl, stirring it in. You only want to add enough of the hot water mix to get a mushy consistency that will let you scoop the mush with the mixing spoon.
• When your skillet & frying oil is ready, you can start frying the scoops of cornmeal. Don't let it cook too fast or slow. Too fast & it will burn; too slow & it will be over oily.
• Let each side brown as much as you want. (My sister likes hers crunchy, but I like mine golden & kind of soft.) Take out & drain on paper towels.

Hot water cornbread is best eaten hot. If you do save some for later, you can break the patties up into hot soup, beans or gumbo, but hot is best.

Lookin back on Xmas past.... and Recipes !

I'm having a Thanksgiving feast with Afrono Quilters next Monday.... I heard my girlfriend say she would make hot-water cornbread.....  WOW!   I volunteered candied yams!
INGREDIENTS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2 pounds yams, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick   +    about 1 1/2 cups water.
Boil yams until slightly underdone, to avoid breaking. Strain, cool and set aside.
In a large container whisk together orange juice, corn syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and zest

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar, more to taste
1/2 cup light brown sugar, more to taste
1/2 teaspoonground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoonground allspice
1 cup raisins (optional)
2 cups pineapple chunks (optional)
1 pkg marshamallows

1. Place the yams in a 12- by 12-inch baking pan. Mix the butter, both sugars, cinnamon, and allspice in a small bowl until blended. Sprinkle this mixture over the sweet potatoes (yams)  Cover the baking pan tightly and bake for 25 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the raisins and pineapple chunks over the yams and baste them with the juices in the pan. Cover the yams and continue baking until very tender and the juices are bubbling, about 15-20 minutes. Serve hot from the pan.

Nutritional Facts                                 Amount Per Serving
Calories 406
Total Fat 8g12%
Saturated Fat 5g7%                             Unsaturated Fat 1g
Cholesterol 20mg7%                           Sodium 79mg3%
Total Carbohydrate 81g27%               Dietary Fiber 11g43%
Sugars 11g                                          Protein 4g
Vitamin A 13% Vitamin C 117%         Calcium 7% Iron 8%
Potassium 59% Vitamin E 3%