Snow Day the Third: Only Weather-Essential Vegan Cornbreads Must Report to Work

Holy moly, another snow day!

My parents have been requesting a link to the killer vegan cornbread I made for them a couple of weeks ago. This is a perfect accompaniment to any snow day soups that might be simmering in kitchens out there on this cold, wet Kansas morning.

I've always been on the fence about cornbread. For a long time, the only cornbread I knew was made from a Jiffy box. It was neon yellow, dry, crumbly, and largely tasteless, and it felt like little more than a distraction from whatever spicy stew or chili was at the center of the table.

But, as I've gotten older, I've encountered some truly delicious cornbreads, my absolute favorite being a sweet, spicy jalapeno cornbread baked in a cast iron skillet at Houston's on the Plaza in Kansas City. I went to dinner there with a friend and learned that, while the cornbread isn't on the menu, they'll make it special for those who know to ask for it.

But this cornbread actually rivals Houston's. That's right, a vegan cornbread is equal to the best cornbread I've ever had. If I can just incorporate jalapenos into this recipe, then I basically never need to leave the house again.

I won't repost the recipe here because I followed it nearly verbatim from the original. (By the way, according to the description at Food.com, this recipe was developed by an 11-year-old vegan baker for a cornbread contest which she, predictably, won.)

One note: this recipe calls for combining ground flax seed and water into what is known as a "flax egg." When exposed to water, flax swells and becomes all glue-y, which makes it an ideal substitute for eggs in binding vegan baked goods. It also makes for pretty little brown flakes in the final product, which I find visually appealing!

My flax egg, on its way to getting gummy.

This recipe calls for boiling the flax and water together for three minutes, but I've never seen that direction anywhere else, so I ignored it. Instead, I combined the flax seed and water, stirred them together, microwaved them for about 30 seconds, and waited until the mixture got a little gloppy. (Yes, that is a technical term.) It worked just fine.

Also, I replaced one tablespoon of flour with 1 tablespoon of vital wheat gluten for extra structure and sliceability. One of the Food.com commenters recommended it, and the substitution worked well, though you probably don't need it if you don't have any gluten on hand.

Trust me: this is tasty even before baking.

Oh, and have I mentioned the best thing about vegan baking? Like, the best thing ever? YOU CAN ALWAYS LICK THE BOWL WITHOUT FEAR OF SALMONELLA POISONING FROM THE EGGS. I strongly recommend that you at least lick the spoon after making this if not the whole bowl: trust me, it's worth it.

Vegan baking: GAME. CHANGER. Vegan cornbread: a very sweet snow day treat!