Jonnycakes — a Rhode Island favorite.
Photo Credit : Aimee SeaveyBob and Diane Smith, operators of the Samuel E. Perry Grist Mill in Perryville, RI, share their recipe for South County Jonnycakes. In South County, where Rhode Island Whitecap Flint Corn is grown in the ideal soil and climate of its coastal land, the jonnycakes are thick and crisp with plenty of butter.
Want more? See How to Make Jonnycakesor check out our list of 75 Classic New England Foods.
1 cup Rhode Island jonnycake meal (or cornmeal)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
3-4 tablespoons milk
In a large bowl, whisk together the meal, sugar, and salt. Add the boiling water and stir to combine. Thin the batter with milk until the mixture is the consistency of thin mashed potatoes and will drop easily from a spoon (you may need additional milk).
Heat 1-2 tablespoons of bacon grease or corn oil on a griddle over medium-high heat. Drop the batter by the spoonful onto the griddle and cook 5-6 minutes or until a crisp, brown crust is formed. Flip and cook an additional few minutes until browned on both sides.
Serve hot with butter.
Aimee Tucker is Yankee Magazine’s Home Editor and the Senior Digital Editor of NewEngland.com. A lifelong New Englander and Yankee contributor since 2010, Aimee has written columns devoted to history, foliage, retro food, and architecture, and regularly shares her experiences in New England travel, home, and gardening. Her most memorable Yankee experiences to date include meeting Stephen King, singing along to a James Taylor Fourth of July concert at Tanglewood, and taking to the skies in the Hood blimp for an open-air tour of the Massachusetts coastline.
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