District 9: Whole Grain Cornbread.

(Want to start with District 1?)

Grain is the primary industry of District 9.  Little else is known of the district, and Suzanne Collins doesn't describe their bread, so I went with this produce-laden whole grain cornbread for the bread bowl of Panem.

District 9: Whole Grain Cornbread.

I made some alterations to this recipe.

You'll need:

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup yellow corn meal
• 3 Tbsp grated Parmesan
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder*
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp milk
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1 egg
• 1 ear corn, kernels cut from cob
• 1/4 red onion, minced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, minced

*I used less baking powder than the original recipe called for because I couldn't find corn meal that didn't already have baking powder mixed in...not sure if that's standard or not, but since the original recipe makes no mention of it, I had no idea if that had already been taken into account or if I should leave it out entirely.  So I just went with a little less extra than was called for, and it turned out fine with what I used.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, corn meal, Parmesan, baking powder, chili powder, and salt:

Mix thoroughly:

Add the milk, oil, honey, and egg:

Mix well, until everything is sufficiently moist:

Prep your produce:

After husking the ear of corn, cut the kernels off the cob (I use a shallow pie plate to catch the kernels):

Mince about a fourth of the red onion:

Cut the stem end off the jalapeño, slice it into halves or thirds, and cut out the middle with the seeds:

Mince what's left:

Here's approximately how much you'll end up with of your produce mix-ins:

Note that the cups are not quite full.

Add the mix-ins to the batter:

Mix thoroughly:

Preheat your oven to 425*F, then preheat your cast iron skillet for about five minutes in the oven:

Once hot, spray the skillet with cooking spray (or grease with butter):

Spoon the batter into the skillet, making sure it fills the entire bottom:

Bake for 18-20 minutes:

Remove when golden brown (or when it looks done...since it looks pretty brown to begin with...) :

Remove from skillet immediately, by dumping it ungracefully onto a wire rack:

I figured the safest way to flip it over while keeping it intact was to sandwich it between a second wire rack and flip the whole thing over.  It worked:

Slice and serve!

And for your cut-and-paste convenience:

Whole Grain Cornbread

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup yellow corn meal
• 3 Tbsp grated Parmesan
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp milk
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1 egg
• 1 ear corn, kernels cut from cob
• 1/4 red onion, minced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, minced

1. Combine flour, corn meal, Parmesan, baking powder, chili powder, and salt; mix well.  Add milk, oil, honey, and egg; mix well, until moist throughout.
2. Add corn, onion, and jalapeño to batter; mix thoroughly.
3. Preheat oven to 425*F; preheat skillet in warm oven for five minutes.  Remove; coat hot skillet with cooking spray.
4. Spoon batter into skillet, filling all the way to edges.  Bake 18-20 minutes (until lightly browned).  Remove from skillet immediately.  Slice to serve.

Easter Eggs

Can you find the Easter egg in the main photo?  Just one this time!

District 9: Whole Grain Cornbread.  (Can you spot the Easter egg?)

Ready for the District 8 reveal?

District 8 Easter eggs.

I know at least one was spotted by a reader...I left you with the hint that all three props I've used have been featured elsewhere on my blog.  Did you recognize any of them?  That's the White Tree of Gondor (LOTR) on a t-shirt (featured in this post, under #2) hiding under a thin black scarf (which reminds me of Arwen's veil at Aragorn's tomb, as well).  Next is the Sherlock-themed fabric I use for some of my Etsy products, with a design of yellow smileys on the wallpaper of 221B (featured on the Etsy page of my blog, as well as in my shop).  Last is the Musketeer tabard I wore for Halloween several years ago (featured here, under #1).

Let me know in the comments if you catch the Easter egg this week, or if you try your hand at District 9 cornbread!  May the odds be ever in your favor! :-)

(Ready for District 10?)