A few months ago I posted about going down to Pap’s for a piece of his sweet bread. More than a few of you wanted his recipe. Today-I’m going to show you how Pap makes sweet bread.
First Pap heats 2 cast iron pans on the stove and adds a spoonful of lard to each.
While the lard is melting-Pap breaks 2 eggs in a mixing bowl.
He cuts a stick of butter in half. Then cuts the half in half-adding a half of a half to each pan. (I think I just invented a new tongue twister)
While the butter is melting Pap adds one cup whole milk to the eggs and mixes well; then he adds 2 teaspoons of vanilla and mixes well.
Once the butter is melted in the frying pans-Pap pours most of it into the bowl-stirring well. Pap says he likes to melt his butter in the frying pan because it’s one less dish to wash.
Next Pap adds a little less than 1 cup of sugar to the mixture and stirs well.
He then adds 2 cups of self rising flour and stirs till smooth. (Pap’s Mother used plain flour-sodie-and salt. Sometimes Pap makes his sweet bread that way-other times he takes the faster route of using self-rising flour)
Pap divides the batter equally between the 2 pans-and puts them in a pre-heated 350 degree oven.
Pap bakes the sweet bread for 20-25 minutes or till golden brown.
You can put icing on your sweet bread if you want to-but our favorite way to eat it is straight out of the pan. Pap likes to open a can of Granny’s peaches to eat with his.
When Pap was growing up in the mountains of NC there wasn’t many sweet treats for kids to eat. Pap has fond memories of the special times his Mother would make their family a pan of sweet bread.
If you try it-Pap and I hope you like it!
Tipper
This post was originally published here on the Blind Pig in 2011.
Tipper,
I absolutely love reading your Blind Pig posts and recipes, just wish I didn’t have to be gluten free.
Seems like living in Appalachian country is fun & challenging and y’all eat yummy meals.
Thanks for sharing.
I’m new to you blog, I just found and subscribed on YouTube. I was browsing and found this recipe. It’s what my mother-in-law called her one egg pudding. She obliviously made a smaller recipe in just one skillet.
Thank you so much for this recipe. My mother said that it was her father’s favorite. I never wrote the recipe down as I thought I’d never forget So happy to have this.
That is like what we call hot milk sponge cake. But next time you can bet I will make mine is a cast iron skillet. We always used a square pan.
Angie-thank you for the comment! Here is the link to our cornbread recipe-but it’s more of the dense kind you may not like it : )
https://blindpigandtheacorn.com/making-cornbread/
Tipper,
My grandma used to make this and believe it or not I have to. One time I made it and one of my bunch came in and thought it was regular corn bread and they said, “that cornbread was kind of sweet”.
Hi Tipper,Mom would make cake like paps sweet bread,bake it in a 8 by 8 inch pan.She would eather make a vanilla sauce or cocoa,with water-sugar and corn starch,it was called cottage pudding.Ever hear of it.God Bless.
I’d love a chance to read the book. Always like finding new authors. Well, new to me anyway. Love your blog
Tipper,
The joke is on me. When I saw the topic “Sweet Bread” I thought you were referring to pork pancreas which is what old country folk in the deep South called it.
Bobby Dale
Tipper,
A little over 2 weeks ago I was
craving and thinking about Pap’s
Sweetbread and Peaches. Tell Pap
and Granny thanks for the pep talk
lately. I am now a Professional at
puttin’ in Eyedrops.ha …Ken
Your post brought back such good memories of my childhood. I remember my mother making sweet bread when I was a little girl and it looked just like Pap’s. There was nothing like a cold glass of sweet milk with a slice of warm sweet bread from Mama’s oven. What a treat!!! My cousin said Mama’s house always smelled like vanilla flavoring. I have no doubt it came from the sweet bread baking in her oven. Such good memories! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Tipper, Just recently I sent your post to a friend who remembers eating sweet bread as a child and wanted to try it again. I remember my mother-in-law making this for Sunday dinner. Great memories.
Forgot to say, I’m saving Pap’s recipe to try when I get the “okay” to start using sugar again. Might be the first thing I make!
Fresh fish – wow! I’ve bought frozen haddock a couple of times lately and made slaw w homemade mayo…seemed like a funny craving for the middle of winter, but what a perfect meal. Must be something about February has me craving fish. The only way I’d get fresh now is to drive over to a pond, cut a hole in the ice and sit out there with a drop line and wrapped in all my warmest clothes….hmmm. Frozen haddock is pretty good đŸ˜‰
My grand uncle’s nickname was Sweetbread. They say when he was young, he would carry sweetbread in his pocket when he went to see his girlfriends.
This sounds wonderful! I can taste it before I have the real thing. Another cookbook recipe for sure!
I always appreciate the recipes that you post. A little taste of the past that we all need to hold on to. Things change so fast, and not all for the better in my book! Thank you for posting the recipe, I love the idea of fresh peaches with it!
Pam
scrap-n-sewgranny.blogspot.com
I’m about to start a Weight Watchers at home diet just as soon as the kit arrives in the mail. If I hurry up and make Pap’s bread, it might not have time to show up on the scales before I start the punishment.
Tip, does this sweet bread have a light texture like cake or is it a little heavier? It looks wonderful. I remember the first post but never tried making it. I think I’ll give it a try!
I’ve made this recipe and it is delicious. It would make a great base for strawberry shortcake.
My Aunt Mamie made a sweet bread that we kids loved to eat. She baked them in muffin tins. We thought it was the greatest thing to visit her and have her offer us one. She never put anything on it. I often wondered how she made them. She always refused to give us a recipe. It was her big secret. Barbara
I think my Mother made this and added
cinnamon and raisins. I remember the cast iron skillets in the oven but not the recipe.
I am going to try it.
This sounds like a keeper. Mom used to stir up something similar which my Dad loved. Because I wasn’t much of a sweet eater growing up, I never tried it. It would have been great to have remained a sweets hater, but didn’t happen. You know what they say about taste changing every 7 years. Anyway, I may just have to replace that state fair funnel cake recipe with this.
B Ruth is right, as this sure needs in a cookbook.
B-I’d give the mixture of skim and evaporated a try! Let us know how it turns out. I haven’t had any fresh fish yet this year-but man does that meal sound good!
Blind Pig The Acorn
Celebrating and Preserving the
Culture of Appalachia
http://www.blindpigandtheacorn.com
Tipper,
This post is one for the new cookbook don’t you think?
I remember this post. I don’t have two iron skillets the same size. So, I never got around to making it! I think I will give it a try and just bake one in a cake pan. Also, I never have whole milk, only skim! Do you think evaporated milk mixed with skim would change it up very much?
I wish I had a slice right now with my morning coffee.
Since it is February, the “Crappie” are egging up and it was a fairly nice day….my better-half and son went fishing yesterday. They brought home a fresh mess! We put a package in the freezer and cooked the rest for supper. Slaw, hush-puppies, tater-tots and “fresh crappie”…the first mess of the year is the best! Yes, we about foundered ourselves on crappie!
A few more warmish days and they will be jumping in the boat!
Have you had fresh fish yet!
Thanks Tipper,
PS…they also caught 5 blue cat fish, but threw them back. One was about 5 lbs…but I didn’t see it! LOL
I got a new rod, reel and bait box for Christmas…mine was getting old. I love to fish with one of those very small rods and a small cardinal reel…so if and when catch a bigger one it feels like a whale! LOL