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Title: Jonny Cakes (Johnny Cakes)
Categories: American Pancake Brunch
Yield: 10 Cakes

1cJonny cake meal or white cornmeal*
1/4tsSalt
3/4cBoiling water
1/4cMilk
1tbHeavy cream
2tbVegetable oil

* Gray's Grist Mill, P. O. Box 422, Adamsville, Rhode Island 02801, (508) 636-6705. Stone-ground flour, jonny cake meal, brown bread flour mix, three-grain pancake mix, and boiled cider.

Gray's Grist Mill has been turning out Rhode Island Jonny Cake Meal since 1878. Natives of the state, as well as anyone who still longs for the taste of real jonny cakes, are glad to know that some of the fields of Little Compton, Rhode Island, still yield golden harvests of Narragansett Indian Flint Corn, and that a little mill by a pond in nearby Adamsville still grinds true Rhode Island Jonny Cake Meal.

We offer jonny cakes on our Sunday brunch menu accompanied by local maple syrup, fried eggs, and rashers of locally smoked bacon. They are unrivaled as our biggest seller every Sunday.

Jonny cakes should be crunchy on both sides and creamy with a rich corn flavor inside. The recipe that follows is from Tim the miller. Who would better know how to make these treats?

1. In a medium bowl, combine the jonny cake meal or white cornmeal and salt and stir in the fthe boiling water. Let rest for a few minutes, uncovered. Add the milk and cream, and stir until well blended.

2. Heat a cast-iron griddle over medium-high heat, or heat an electric griddle to 375F. Pour the oil onto the cooking surface of the griddle and tilt to evenly disperse the oil.

3. Drop the batter by spoonfuls onto the griddle to form 3 1/2 to 4-inch-round cakes, and then resist the urge to flip them or move them around for about 4 to 5 minutes. Jonny cakes have a tendency to stick sometimes and leaving them alone helps alleviate this problem. Flip them over to cook on the other side for about 4 minutes more. Serve them warm with everything from maple syrup to poaced eggs and cavair.

Source: "The Shaker Kitchen" by Jeffrey S. Paige, published by Clarkson N. Potter 1994, ISBN 0-517-58838-2

Typed by Manny Rothstein 4/98

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