How to make Cornmeal- Recipe Corn Bread for Travelers and Cherokee Corn Pones by Regi

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

How to make Cornmeal

 

Use flour corn.  This is skinned with wood ashes.  Sieve the ashes, put into iron pot which is full of boiling water.  Drop kernels of corn and boil and stir often until thick enough to bubble.  Remove corn and take to the branch or use running water over the corn placed in a sieve.  After it has washed thoroughly, let the corn drip dry.  While still damp place in the home made corn beater and pound into meal. 

 

Beater- A beater is made from a hollow log or stump.  The beating pole is made from a good size tree and a large section is left at the top to give weight.

(I did some searches on Cherokee artifacts and couldn't find a picture of a beater or a beating pole =O(

 

Cornbread for travelers-

Since the Indian could not carry their cooking pots and pans, they used what was available.  To cook bread the men would cut pieces of bark from a chestnut tree.  The dough was put on the inside of the bark from a chestnut tree.  The dough was put on the inside of the bark and this was placed in front of the fire to cook until done.  This was one of best breads because of the bark and wood smoke.

 

Thaquettes recipe for Sweet Bread

 

Oo-Ga-Na-S-DiGa-Do

 

Make a dough from flour.  As you would make a biscuit.  To this dough add some molasses, sugar or honey.  bake this in small or large pones.  Eat like cake...

 

I had to look of Chorokee Corn Pones to understand what they meant by bake this in small pones.  Here is a recipe for them-

 

Cherokee Corn Pones Yield: 8 Servings

2 c Cornmeal
1/4 ts Baking soda
1 ts Salt
1/2 c Shortening
3/4 c Buttermilk
3/4 c Milk

Butter

Combine cornmeal, baking soda, and salt; cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk and milk, stirring just until dry ingreients are moistened. Form batter into eight 1/2 inch thick cakes. Place on a hot greased griddle. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Turn and bake an additional 15 minutes. Serve hot with butter.

 

This recipe sounded yum

 

Kentucky Corn Pones

 

Kentucky Corn Pones Yield: 6 servings Ingredients: 1 Cup Cornmeal 1/2 Cup Whipping cream 1/2 Tsp Salt 1 Tbl Butter 1/2 Cup water, Boiling 1 Tsp Baking powder Combine cornmeal and salt; add boiling water and stir well. Add remaining ingredients. Drop mixture by tablespoonfuls onto a greased griddle. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes [...]