Maple Cornbread

When I was growing up we had a hen house with four hens. I am not sure why my parents decided to add farm animals to our suburban backyard (urban-homesteading was not hip in the early 1990s), but one of the clear benefits was the fresh eggs they provided — well, on days when my sisters and I remembered to check for them. I don’t remember eating a lot of egg dishes with the eggs from our hens, but I do remember a lot of corn muffins, and good corn muffins need eggs. We had corn muffins on the supper table often, whether the meal was roast chicken or spaghetti. Buttery Parker House Rolls with their fussy yeast were too time-consuming, and for Thanksgiving only. Corn muffins were our workhorse. To this day I still love a good batch of cornbread or corn muffins, and now that I have my own kitchen, I like dressing up cornbread to fit the meal its accompanying. A wedge of cornbread placed in a bowl with spicy chili ladled on top is flavored with cheddar and studded with jalapenos, but for breakfast or snacking, nothing is better than the simple addition of pure maple syrup — both in the batter and right on top of a square, still warm from the oven.

The maple flavor is subtle. In truth, I wish it were stronger, but it’s there…and with a little extra on top to help it out, it’s perfect. The bread itself is light and moist — no dry cornbread here!

Make a batch for your next brunch or to keep on hand for snacking. You’ll want to make this again and again.

Ready to make a batch? View and print the recipe for Maple Cornbread.