Real Georgia Cornbread, No Flour

This past week, wanting to try my hand at a German pancake like Kate's, I noticed that I didn't have a large enough cast iron skillet--just a little tiny one.

So my mama put money in my pocket book and said, "Go get you one"  and I went right over to Sunset Ridge Hardware and got me one.

Suddenly, in possession of a genuine cast iron skillet, I got to thinking about cornbread--the kind that can only be made in a black skillet preheated in the oven with grease in it. My parents used to make it all the time, and it goes something like this:

Pour some SELF-RISING cornmeal in a bowl, then pour a little oil, some BUTTERMILK,  and an egg or two.  Mix it up and pour it into a hot oiled skillet.

The problem is that in San Antonio, there's no SELF-RISING cornmeal. On the packages of regular cornmeal, the recipes usually include flour and regular milk (or "sweet milk" as my daddy used to call it.)

So yesterday, Pam and Carlene and I were wondering together if you have to use baking soda if you're using buttermilk.

Here's what I found on the net:

Buttermilk is ideal in baking because there's no fat and it acts very much like whole milk....If you are going to substitute buttermilk for milk in your recipes, you'll need to change the amount of baking soda and baking powder as well.  This is because of the higher acid content in buttermilk.  You will usually need less baking soda or baking powder.

For each cup of buttermilk used instead of milk you will want to use 2 teaspoons less baking powder and add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda.