Recipe Manuscript

Corn Pone

Name: Corn Pone
Prep time: PTPT10M
Cook time: PTPT35M
Yield: 6
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 200 grams boiled hominy (or substitute unsweetened canned/jarred hominy, drained and rinsed); 15 grams unsalted butter (1 tablespoon); 3 large eggs; 400 ml whole milk; 100–150 grams fine yellow cornmeal; Salt to taste (optional, but recommended)

1903

From the treasured pages of Cooking in old Créole days. La cuisine créole à l'usage des petits ménages

Written by Célestine Eustis

Early Modern Kitchen (1900 - 1930)American Beginner Breakfast

Original Recipe • 1903

Original Manuscript(circa Early Modern Kitchen, 1900 - 1930)

As inscribed by the original author's hand, transcribed with care by Lost Kitchen Scrolls

Corn Pone

"is highly recommended as a breakfast dish. Take a heaping coffee-cupful of boiled hominy, heat it, and thin in a tablespoonful of butterr, three eggs, and nearly one pint of sweet milk. As much corn meal may be added as will serve to thicken this till it is like the batter for “Johnny- cakes.” Bake in a quick oven and serve. —“LEGS,” one of Thomas Jefferson's Plantations."

Note on the Original Text

Recipes in early 1900s America were written with the expectation of experienced home cooks in mind. Quantities were given in everyday household measures—like a 'coffee-cupful' rather than grams or milliliters. Instructions such as 'quick oven' indicated a high baking temperature, while references to 'Johnny-cakes' assumed readers knew the consistency of traditional batters. Occasional archaic spellings ('thin in a tablespoonful of butter') and turns of phrase reflect the informal, handed-down nature of many period recipes.

Modern Kitchen Interpretation

Recipe's Origin

Cooking in old Créole days. La cuisine créole à l'usage des petits ménages - Click to view recipe in book

Title

Cooking in old Créole days. La cuisine créole à l'usage des petits ménages (1903)

You can also click the book image above to peruse the original tome

Writer

Célestine Eustis

Era

1903

Publisher

R.H. Russell

Background

Take a delicious journey back in time with this charming bilingual collection of Creole and American recipes, crafted for cozy households. Célestine Eustis blends French flair with Southern soul, guiding both the novice and seasoned gourmand through the distinct flavors and delightful traditions of old Creole kitchens.

Kindly made available by

Internet Archive

Historical Background of the Recipe

Learn about old traditions

This Corn Pone recipe hails from the evocative culinary landscape of early 20th century Creole America, as captured in Célestine Eustis’s 1903 collection. At the time, Creole cuisine in Louisiana and the broader southern United States blended influences from French, African, and Native American cooks. Hominy (hulled corn kernels) and cornmeal were central to the region's foodways, making this comfortable, filling breakfast dish a staple on both plantation and modest family tables. The recipe also carries the ambiance of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello kitchens—a testament to how food traditions wove throughout regional identities.

Culinary Tools when the Recipe was Crafted

Tools and techniques from kitchens of old

Turn-of-the-century cooks would have prepared corn pone using a deep mixing bowl, a stout wooden spoon, and possibly a hand-cranked egg beater. The mixture would be baked in a cast-iron or heavy tin pan, placed in a well-heated, wood-fired oven. Measuring was done by 'coffee-cupfuls' (an approximate standard) and by eye, guided by practical kitchen experience rather than formal scales.

Modern Kitchen Adaptation

Ingredients and techniques for today's cooks

ounces, cups, Fahrenheit

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

35 mins

Servings

Ingredients

7 ounces boiled hominy (or substitute unsweetened canned/jarred hominy, drained and rinsed)
1/2 ounce unsalted butter (1 tablespoon)
3 large eggs
1 2/3 cups whole milk
3.5–5.3 ounces fine yellow cornmeal
Salt to taste (optional, but recommended)

Instructions

To recreate Corn Pone for a modern kitchen, start by using 1 heaping cup (about 7 ounces) of boiled hominy.
Warm it through, then stir in 1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) of unsalted butter until melted.
Beat in 3 large eggs and add 1 2/3 cups whole milk, mixing well.
Gradually add fine cornmeal, about 3.5–5.3 ounces, until the mixtur is thick, similar to the batter for Johnnycakes (a thick pancake batter).
Pour the batter into a greased baking dish.
Bake in an oven preheated to 400°F until golden and set, about 30–35 minutes.
Serve warm for breakfest.

Estimated Calories

220 per serving

Cooking Estimates

This recipe takes about 10 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to bake. Each serving has about 220 calories, and the recipe makes 6 servings.