Skillet Cornbread

So I have mentioned, many times, my love for Pioneer Woman's recipes. I literally have never had a food question that she doesn't answer- it's amazing. My husband got me her first cookbook last month and my favorite recipe- so far- is her skillet cornbread.

Here are the lovely ingredients:

I actually changed the recipe some because my husband and I like sweet cornbread and her cornbread recipe is original stuff. I added the sugar and honey. Even with sugar and honey it is only mildly sweet. Often, when I eat sweet cornbread it is almost like a cupcake-without frosting. This recipe is not like that. It is just a little hint of sweetness. I have made both recipes and it is good either way.

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoon shortening
3 Tablespoon sugar
2 Tablespoon honey

Here we go:
1. Preheat the oven to 450 F. In a bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt and baking powder and stir together.
2. Measure the buttermilk and milk in a measuring cup and add the egg. Stir together with a fork. I added the honey at this point also.
3. Add the baking soda to the wet ingredients and stir.
4. Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients.
5. Stir with a fork until just combined. Do not over stir.
6. In a small bowl, melt 1/4 cup of the shortening in the microwave.
7. Slowly add the melted shortening to the batter, stirring constantly until just combined.
8. In an iron skillet over high heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons shortening. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and spread to even out the surface. Cook on the stove top for 1 minute, then bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. The edges will be crispy.
9. Slice into squares and serve!

P.S. I am now obsessed with making pictures look like the are from the 1960s.

Now I would like to take this moment to say that I love the crispy edges. I mean love it. I am traditionally a squishy center piece kind of person. For instance, the new brownie pan that makes all corner pieces is, in my mind, complete sacrilege. What would I do without the gooey center??

But cornbread- that is a whole other ballgame. This is why I am currently obsessed with buying one of these:

Of course, when I called my mom with this idea she looked to see if she had one- and then laughed at me when she found two. I need to go antiquing because you really don't see them around that often. Good luck if you make it! It is a true Southern dish of yumminess.