Title: Crackling Cornbread Muffins

Down South, cornbread without cracklings is like biscuits without gravy. You can do it, but why would you?

This batter is cornmeal-forward the way it ought to be, with just a half cup of flour to hold things together. The cracklings get stirred right in, so every bite has pockets of salty, porky crunch buried in tender, golden cornbread.

The secret weapon here is preheating the greased muffin pans until they’re screaming hot before the batter goes in. That blast of heat is what gives you those shatteringly crispy edges that make people fight over the last muffin.

Yields two dozen, which sounds like a lot until you put them on the table.

Kitchen Tips

• Get those muffin pans ripping hot before you pour in the batter. Cold pans make soft, sad edges. Hot pans make the kind of crust you brag about.
• Fill each cup two-thirds full, no more. These rise up proud and you don’t want them spilling over the sides.
• If you can’t find store-bought cracklings, render your own from pork fatback. Cut it small, cook it low and slow in a skillet until golden and crunchy.