This is how we make corn bread,
Papa style:
Assemble your ingredients:
cornmeal
sugar
eggs
milk
baking powder
baking soda
salt
buttermilk
flour
butter
Buttermilk?
Preheat your oven.
What are we doing with a frying pan?
Put the skillet in the oven.
In the oven? Are you sure?
Why?
This is how we make corn bread.
Now, mix all the dry ingredients
in one bowl.
And all the wet ingredients
in another.
What are we doing with the frying pan?
It’s for the corn bread.
You’ll see.
But we make corn bread in a brownie pan.
Where’s the brownie pan?
Are you sure we’re making corn bread?
Then fold the wet ingredients
into the dry,
but don’t stir it too much.
It’s all lumpy.
That’s okay. It’s supposed to be.
This is how we make corn bread.
Is this Japanese corn bread?
Now, take the skillet out of the oven—
use the pot holders or you’ll burn your hands.
Put some butter in the skillet
and swirl it around.
It sizzles, like when you toss snow
at the woodstove.
Then, put the batter in the skillet.
Put the skillet back in the oven.
Where’s the brownie pan?
I don’t think we’re using one.
She’s using a frying pan.
That’s weird.
Bake it thirty minutes, until
the top is golden.
I’m not eating this.
It’s not real corn bread.
This is how we make corn bread.
It comes out of the oven like
warm crunchy softness.
You should taste this corn bread.
It’s really good!