Cornbread

Cornmeal is great in pancakes too.  Just replace half of the flour with cornmeal.

We make cornbread for my Dh. He is from Mennonite background and polenta for me as my dad was from Italain background.  It's going to be too hot to bake today but maybe Thursday. You have such good looking kids. I just love all your posts. I'm glad you are getting your 3 sons into cooking and baking. My Dh is the cook in the family and I'm the baker and prep cook.

Have you looked at the cover for Security Blanket by Delores Fossen. I think 4 could have been the model for the baby.  It's posted on the blogs.

Love the pictures - perfect!  They go along with your description so well.

I have a cornbread recipe that takes pecans - and my kids devoured it.

You are a cookbook fiend, too, I see?  YAY!  One can never have too many cookbooks!

Here is an explanation of Polenta from the California Culinary Academy cookbook Italian Cooking

Polenta=Cornmeal Mush

Polenta must be watched and stirred continuously as it cooks, but diligence yields results: a thick creamy golden pudding that has inspired cooks to countless variations. Common throughout northern Italy, polenta can be eaten hot, or it can be poured into a pan, cooled and sliced. In that form it can be layered with meat sauces, or mushrooms and cheese and baked until bubbly or served as grilled slices.

My explanation to add to the above is that it is served as the starch dish instead of rice, potatoes or pasta. Often the polenta is put in the bottom of a soup plate with a stew of some type put on top of it. Grilled slices of polenta are served on the side of any type of meat fish or poultry. My Italian grandma would make a big batch in her polenta pot which she shared with her son’s families. You can sometimes find already cooked polenta in Italian supermarkets but this is the slice and grill type as it is already cold. In my experience polenta is a love it or leave it food. My hairdresser is from southern Italy and she doesn’t like it at all.

My favorite recipe for polenta is from the above cookbook.

Creamy Polenta

4 cups of water

1 tablespoon of salt (I cut this in half)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter ( I use salted)

1cup polenta (cornmeal)

¾ cup whipping cream (I use 1 cup half and half)

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a large saucepan with a heavy bottom over high heat, bring water, salt and

1 tablespoon of butter to a boil. Slowly whisk in polenta in a steady stream until mixture is smooth. Cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, for 10 minutes. Add cream and cook, stirring often, until mixture is thick and creamy and tastes fully cooked, about 10 minutes more. Stir in remaining butter and cheese and keep warm until ready to serve. Serves 4 to 6.

Note: Basic Polenta would omit the cream and cheese.

You are right pecans and honey do go well together.  But to the question you asked----the Honey goes on after cooking just before eating.  We would split the square of cornbread open and put just a touch of butter on each side then drizzle on the honey (or more than a drizzle if MOM wasn't looking).