Strawberry Maple Cornbread Cake

Rain all week. The kind of steady, warm summer rain that turns construction sites into swamps and my mood into something resembling a damp towel. Worked three days out of five. Spent the other two at home, restless, cooking because cooking is what I do when the world won't let me work.

I decided to tackle something I've been avoiding: Betty's fried corn. Fried corn is not corn that has been fried — that would be too simple and too logical for Appalachian naming conventions. Fried corn is fresh corn cut off the cob, cooked in a skillet with bacon grease and butter until it caramelizes slightly and the natural sugars in the corn concentrate into something that is, frankly, unreasonable for a vegetable to taste like.

Here's the method: shuck eight ears of fresh corn. Using a sharp knife, cut the kernels off the cob, then turn the knife sideways and scrape the cob to get the corn milk — the starchy, sweet liquid that clings to the cob. This milk is the secret. It's the thickener, the flavor bomb, the thing that turns corn from a side dish into a revelation. Heat bacon grease (two tablespoons) and butter (two tablespoons) in a large cast iron skillet. Add the corn and the milk. Season with salt, pepper, a pinch of sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about twenty minutes. The corn will darken slightly, caramelize on the edges, and the liquid will thicken into a creamy sauce that coats each kernel like a small golden hug.

That's it. Fresh corn, fat, heat, patience. Betty made this every week from July through September when the corn was in. She'd send me home with containers of it. She'd eat it for lunch with just a piece of cornbread. She'd eat it as a snack at three in the afternoon, standing at the stove, eating from the skillet with a fork because at seventy-seven you've earned the right to eat from the skillet and not apologize.

I made it Tuesday. The corn was from the farmers market — not as sweet as Betty's garden corn, but close. The kitchen smelled like July and butter and something older than I can name. Clay came in and said "What's that?" and I said "Fried corn" and he said "Can I have some?" and ate three servings. Three. Of corn. My son, who views vegetables with the suspicion of a customs agent examining suspicious luggage, ate three servings of corn because the bacon grease and butter performed their ancient magic and convinced him that corn was not a vegetable but a gift.

Connie came home from work and saw the skillet and said "You made fried corn." Not a question. A recognition. She knows what Betty's fried corn looks like in a skillet because she's been eating it for twenty-five years and because the look of fried corn — golden, glossy, caramelized at the edges — is unmistakable. She ate a bowl and said "This is really close to Betty's." I said "I scraped the cob." She said "Betty would be proud." I think she would be too.

Betty ate her fried corn with cornbread — that was the whole plate, and she never seemed to think it needed anything else. After I made her fried corn on Tuesday and watched Clay eat three servings without complaint, I wanted to keep that streak going and do something that felt like a natural continuation of the same table she used to set. This Strawberry Maple Cornbread Cake hits the same note: corn-sweet, unhurried, summer in a pan — just the kind of thing you make when the farmers market strawberries are right there and the kitchen already smells like July.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 45 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup whole milk or buttermilk
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 tablespoon maple syrup, extra, for drizzling over strawberries

Instructions

Preheat and prepare. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-inch cast iron skillet or round cake pan with butter and set aside.
Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
Mix wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, maple syrup, milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract until smooth and uniform.
Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined — a few small lumps are fine. Do not overmix or the cake will tighten up.
Add to pan. Pour the batter into the prepared skillet and spread it evenly with a spatula.
Top with strawberries. Arrange the sliced strawberries over the top of the batter in an even layer. Drizzle the extra tablespoon of maple syrup over the strawberries.
Bake. Bake for 28–32 minutes, until the edges are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The top should be set and lightly caramelized around the strawberries.
Cool and serve. Let the cake cool in the skillet for at least 10 minutes before slicing. Serve warm with a drizzle of maple syrup or a pat of butter if you’re feeling generous.

Nutrition (per serving)

Strawberry Maple Cornbread Cake — Betty’s Table, Carried Forward