History

Spoonbread descends from Native American cornmeal porridges through Virginia and Kentucky plantation kitchens, whipped with eggs and milk until it bakes into a wobbling, souffle-like pudding. Boone Tavern in Berea, founded in 1909, made table-side spoonbread its calling card and the town hosts an annual Spoonbread Festival, while Bluegrass home cooks keep it in the holiday rotation alongside country ham.

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Common allergens: Dairy, Eggs

Make it at home

Yield Serves 6Hands-on 20 minTotal 1 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 150g white cornmeal
  • 480ml whole milk
  • 45g butter, plus more for the dish
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp sugar

Method

  1. Heat the milk to a bare simmer and whisk in the cornmeal until thick, about 3 minutes; stir in the butter, salt and sugar and cool slightly.
  2. Beat the yolks with the baking powder and fold into the cornmeal base.
  3. Whip the whites to soft peaks and fold them through in two additions.
  4. Scrape into a buttered 20cm baking dish and bake at 190C for 35 to 40 minutes until puffed and just set in the centre.
  5. Serve immediately with a spoon, straight from the dish, with butter melting on top.

Tip from the editors. It must wobble; an extra five minutes in the oven turns spoonbread into plain cornbread and wastes the whipped whites.

Where to eat kentucky spoonbread

Kentucky spoonbread in Lexington

Featured by TableJourney as a signature dish of Lexington. See where to eat Kentucky spoonbread in Lexington or the Lexington signature dishes guide.

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