Browned Butter Skillet Cornbread

This cornbread is made with only cornmeal—no wheat flour—and just 2 teaspoons sugar, so it’s closer in flavor and texture to Southern cornbread than to sweet, cakey-crumbed Northern style. We brown the butter for the batter and for coating the skillet, which brings rich, nutty notes to complement the flavor of the corn. For best flavor, opt for stone-ground fine cornmeal, but standard cornmeal works, too. A cast-iron skillet, 10 inches in diameter, produces a fantastic, deeply browned, crisp bottom crust and nice, straight sides. A conventional skillet (not nonstick) with an oven-safe handle is fine, too, but the bottom of the bread will be lighter in color and not quite as crisp, and the sides will be rounded because of the skillet’s sloped shape. We like to invert the cornbread out of the pan for serving, but if you prefer you can cut wedges right in the skillet, though the bottom will soften slightly as it cools.