Snow or Wintry Day? How about some Corn Hoe Cakes!

Hoe cakes are an old fashioned addition to chili, soup or just a bowl of pintos on a cold winter’s day.

Life was hard even 120 years ago and certainly millenial before our modern age. The history in the mountain territories is everyone grew corn to make meal to stay alive during the winter. Most people were not wealthy and had to do what they could to survive.

They grew their own food, hunted and preserved by canning for the long winter ahead. The farmers carried hoe cakes wrapped in a hankerchief for lunch during their farming activities. My grandfather Rob Mills told me that. Their farm where they grew apples and cabbage to sell was located in Copper Hill, in Floyd County, Virginia. My great grandmother Eliza Mills made them about every morning. She had big, strapping sons, “Who could eat plenty,” he used to say. He loved to pour Blackstrap dark molasses on his hoe cakes. A sight I have never forgotten and can still smell!

In the eastern part of Virginia and other southern states, they were made more like a biscuit out of flour and fed slaves that were hoeing in the fields. (Another reason I find to make my hoe cake out of cornmeal.)

My grandmother, Vesta Mills who came from Franklin County, VA, was one of 12 children. She made the best ever in an iron skillet and fried them in lard. How I loved to watch her cook. My mother was an excellent cook as well. Good memories.

I used oil and a regular skillet. No lard for me, though I will use bacon grease from time to time!

The Hoe Cakes in the photo are cooked in vegetable oil.

Simple and fast:

Mills Hoe Cakes

1 1/2 cups plain cornmeal

1/2 cup Bisquick (yep, I modernized)

2 large eggs

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup oil

1/2 cup frozen corn

In a mixing bowl add the two dry ingredients. Then crack two eggs, mix. Add the oil, mix. Add corn, mix. Add buttermilk. Mix. The consistency should be like a pancake batter. Add buttermilk by tablespoon if it is too stiff.

In a frying pan, heat the oil. When it begins to sizzle, add about a 1/2 cup batter. When top of hoe cake makes cratery bubbles, flip. It should be golden brown on both sides. Place on a warm plate and repeat til batter is gone. Serve with soft butter and local honey if you have it! Or you can try jelly or molasses. Makes 8-10.

(You can make your own buttermilk by adding a tbsp of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt to milk . Stir well before using.)

–Cathy Benson