# Semolina Flour in Cornbread



## debodun (Sep 13, 2017)

I like my own savory, cheesy cornbread and use baking mix in place of all-purpose flour - then I don't have to worry about whether my baking powder is good. I recently acquired a small bag of semolina flour and wanted to know if I could use it in place of regular flour, or whether I'd have to use a mixture of regular flour and semolina, or if this is just a bad idea to use semolina to make cornbread.


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## terry123 (Sep 13, 2017)

To me its a bad idea.  I am a southern, country girl who doesn't want anybody messing with her cornbread!


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## Camper6 (Sep 13, 2017)

Semolina is wheat flour used for making pasta. I don't know what your baking mix is made of.


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## Aunt Bea (Sep 13, 2017)

We have an old Italian bakery in town that uses it to make bread.  The bread has a yellowish color to it and a slightly dry texture.

I would add 1/4 cup semolina flour to 3/4 cup of AP flour for every cup of flour called for in the recipe and use it up a little at a time.  I would not use it as a substitute for the cornmeal in the recipe.

Good luck!


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## debodun (Sep 14, 2017)

Aunt Bea said:


> W I would not use it as a substitute for the cornmeal in the recipe.



I didn't mean to use semolina as a substitute for cornmeal, I meant for the regular flour.


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## Camper6 (Sep 14, 2017)

If the flour is fine, I see no problem in substituting it for regular flour.


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## nvtribefan (Sep 14, 2017)

Sure you can.  It's just a higher gluten flour than all-purpose.


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## nvtribefan (Sep 14, 2017)

You do know you don't need flour at all for cornbread, right?


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## terry123 (Sep 15, 2017)

nvtribefan said:


> You do know you don't need flour at all for cornbread, right?


 Never use flour in cornbread or at least never have. Don't see the reason for it.


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## debodun (Sep 15, 2017)

All recipes I've ever seen for cornbread have about a 50/50 mix of cornmeal and flour.


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## helenbacque (Sep 15, 2017)

Semolina?  Maybe, but never, ever add sugar!  

My southern grandma says so.


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## RadishRose (Sep 15, 2017)

Deb, flour is not needed. Your choice, use it or not. Google some recipes

You said you usually used a "mix" ;you said it relieved you from worrying if your baking powder was fresh. So, we can assume baking powder was already in the "mix", correct?

Well now you're not using the "mix", instead you will use your semolina (flour) together with your cornmeal. 

What's missing? Baking powder! Maybe salt and whatever else was in that "mix".

IMHO, the semolina flour you acquired will give you tough cornbread. But let us know.


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## debodun (Sep 15, 2017)

I made a basic batter for cornbread with 1 cup of yellow cornmeal, and 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup of semolina flour, 2 tsp of baking power, 1/2 tsp baking soda. Wet ingredients are 1 egg, 1 cup of buttermilk (or milk with a tablespoon of white vinegar added), 1/2 cup veg oil and 1/2 cup olive oil. It came out okay (by my standards). I don't like "sweet" cornbread - too much like cake. I spice it up with other seasonings I have on hand. I am not adverse to using curry powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, coriander and almost any spicy spice in any combo. I have also used flax seeds and pumpkin seeds in the batter. I also usually add some shredded cheddar cheese. Not to everyone's liking, but I know what I like.


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## RadishRose (Sep 15, 2017)

Sounds good. Sounds like using AP flour works instead of self-rising flour or the addition of baking powder. I don't like cornbread sweet either. Your other spices sound nice. I like it with cheese onion and peppers.


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## debodun (Sep 15, 2017)

RadishRose said:


> I like it with cheese onion and peppers.



I call it "Mexican style".


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## nvtribefan (Sep 15, 2017)

debodun said:


> All recipes I've ever seen for cornbread have about a 50/50 mix of cornmeal and flour.



That makes a cakelike cornbread.


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## nvtribefan (Sep 15, 2017)

RadishRose said:


> IMHO, the semolina flour you acquired will give you tough cornbread. But let us know.



Only if you overmix.


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## nvtribefan (Sep 15, 2017)

debodun said:


> I made a basic batter for cornbread with 1 cup of yellow cornmeal, and 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup of semolina flour, 2 tsp of baking power, 1/2 tsp baking soda. Wet ingredients are 1 egg, 1 cup of buttermilk (or milk with a tablespoon of white vinegar added), 1/2 cup veg oil and 1/2 cup olive oil. It came out okay (by my standards). I don't like "sweet" cornbread - too much like cake. I spice it up with other seasonings I have on hand. I am not adverse to using curry powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, coriander and almost any spicy spice in any combo. I have also used flax seeds and pumpkin seeds in the batter. I also usually add some shredded cheddar cheese. Not to everyone's liking, but I know what I like.



A cup of fat? Wow.


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## Butterfly (Sep 17, 2017)

nvtribefan said:


> A cup of fat? Wow.



That does seem like an awful lot of fat.  My recipe doesn't call for anywhere near that much, and part of what it does call for I put in the bottom of my cast iron frying pan and heat it up before I put the batter in.  My grandma would flip over in her grave if I made cornbread in anything but a cast iron frying pan.


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## debodun (Sep 18, 2017)

nvtribefan said:


> A cup of fat? Wow.



Oops! Make that 1/4 cup of each oil.


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## nvtribefan (Sep 18, 2017)

debodun said:


> Oops! Make that 1/4 cup of each oil.



Here's a recipe for a nice southern cornbread.  No flour, and the only added fat (2 Tbsp.) goes into the cast iron skillet.

http://www.food.com/recipe/good-eats-creamed-corn-cornbread-alton-brown-265601


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## terry123 (Sep 19, 2017)

nvtribefan said:


> Here's a recipe for a nice southern cornbread.  No flour, and the only added fat (2 Tbsp.) goes into the cast iron skillet.
> 
> http://www.food.com/recipe/good-eats-creamed-corn-cornbread-alton-brown-265601


We don't use the corn unless we are making Mexican cornbread.  A real southern cornbread has no flour and just a tbl of hot oil as the rest is in the bottom of the hot cast iron skillet.  My mother used no sugar but did use buttermilk. We also use this cornbread to make old fashioned dressing at Christmas and Thanksgiving.


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## rkunsaw (Sep 19, 2017)

We use Aunt Jemima's corn meal mix, which has corn meal and flour in it. Butterfly is right about the cast iron skillet. You just can't make good cornbread in anything else.


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## Aunt Bea (Sep 19, 2017)

I use Jiffy when I'm cooking for one.






I place a 6" cast iron frying pan, with a tablespoon of oil, butter or bacon fat, in the oven set at 400F.  Pour the Jiffy mix into a bowl, add 1 egg, a 1/3 cup of milk and stir to form a lumpy batter.  I pull the skillet out of the oven and pour the hot fat into the batter, give it a quick stir and pour the batter into the hot pan.  The pan goes back into the oven for about 18 minutes, give or take a minute.  It's not exactly a _pan_ of cornbread but it's not bad considering the price and the effort involved.


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