Jonnycakes (p. 633)

Jonnycakes (p. 633)!

I remember spending weeks in middle school (in the sad, difficult days before Wikipedia) trying to figure out what the heck a jonnycake was because they figure strongly into books about the Civil War (maybe The Red Badge of Courage? I don't know what I had read that interested me in jonnycakes).

So what is a jonnycake? Pretty much a cornmeal pancake. Very few ingredients though and I imagine it would be easy to make on a campfire.

TJOC recommends that eating them with a pot roast which does sound really good. I ate them by themselves.

First, you combine cornmeal, salt, and sugar in a bowl. Boiling water is then added in as you whisk (to avoid lumps). This would be a lot easier if you had a third arm...it was really hard to hold on to the bowl, whisk, and pour, all at once.





Next, melt some butter in a pan...always a great start to a recipe (and one of TJOC's favorites).




About a quarter cup of batter (such as it is) was dropped in the pan. I was a little concerned at this point--this is less a batter and more cornmeal swimming in water. How is this possibly going to work?





Hmmm...it actually did work!



Bizarrely, the cakes stayed together! I made sure there was enough water to keep the cornmeal moist. I then topped each one with butter and happily ate them...




How was it? Really rich but pretty dang good. I think they would be EXCELLENT with a pot roast...yum! Has anyone else ever had these before? I also think they would be really fun to make with kids when they are learning about the civil war (I loved doing that kind of thing as a kid).


Two other points...
1. I have been making GREAT progress on TJOTJOC through October...I have made a TON of recipes. Great job, Jessica (patting myself on the back)! :)

2. I have been obsessively reading Jim Butchers Dresden Files series. I can't recommend it enough if you like urban fantasy books...the series is spectacularly good! And Jim Butcher and I share a birthday (so you know he's awesome)!