Ruth's Best Cornbread

The holy grail of Southern cooking: cornbread. I prefer mine to be slightly sweet, moist, crisp around the edges, not too dense, and not too crumbly. Sound good? I think so too!

Ingredients:

• 1 C all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 C cornmeal
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1 Tbl baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 C milk
• 1/4 cup butter, melted (you gotta use real butter!)
• 2 eggs

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400. 
2. Grease an 8x8 inch square baking pan.
3. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl with a whisk or a fork.
4. Add the eggs, milk, and melted butter and mix well.
5. Pour into the greased pan. No matter what pan you use - large rectangle, muffin, etc - you want it to be about 1/2 full of batter like this.                                      
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Check with a toothpick to see if it is done (toothpick should come out dry). Let it cool slightly before cutting. 

Creamy Orzo Pasta with Spinach and Mushrooms

Carbs. With veggies! A good substitute for rice or potatoes if you're looking for a hearty side dish.

 Ingredients:

• 2 cups of orzo pasta
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups of chicken broth (use vegetable broth or water if making vegetarian)
• 1/4 tsp celery seed
• 1 tsp salt (more or less to taste)
• 3 C fresh spinach, washed, stems pulled off, and chopped (I used about 1/2 a bunch of fresh spinach, to make 3 C chopped)
• 4-5 mushrooms, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
• 1 tsp parsley
• 2 Tbl butter
• 1/3 C Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Melt the butter in a wide, non-stick skillet. Add the spinach and mushrooms and saute until the spinach wilts.
2. Add the broth, milk, and all spices (not the Parmesan cheese); bring to a boil, then add the pasta. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and simmer until pasta is done. Keep a close eye on it after about 8-10 minutes and instead of stirring, shake the pan back and forth instead. If it starts sticking to the pan, you will either need a little more water or the pasta will be done.
3. When the pasta is cooked, add the Parmesan cheese and stir well. Done!