Egg Nog Cornbread from the Kitchen of Deborah Raney

Author Deborah Raney has written books I've been reading for years because her characters are real and she pulls you into the story until you're sure you know them.

She is down-to-earth, warm and I can't ever imagine her angry. As a mom to four kids, now grown (and now a grandmother!) I'm sure her brow furrowed a time or two, but here's what I know about the moms with that many kids--their kitchens are always open. (I have 4 boys...)




First, a little about Deb
After spending two happy decades as an at-home mom to two sons and two daughters, Deb finally began work on her first novel––a contemporary story––after an intriguing discussion about Alzheimer's disease with her husband, Ken, and their young teenagers. Drawing on her experiences working in a New York nursing home early in her marriage, she crafted a fictional account of one family's struggle with Alzheimer's disease. A VOW TO CHERISH was published by Bethany House Publishers in 1996 and won an Angel Award from Excellence in Media. It has been translated into the Swedish, Danish and Norwegian languages, and is also available in a hardcover large-print edition from Thorndike Press. Steeple Hill Books recently released an update and expanded version of the book.

(Do check out her interview on When I Was Just a Kid, too!)


Her latest book is Almost Forever set in Hanover Falls, part of a series:
"Unearthing a lost memory may cause her to lose everything she holds dear. but could it also set her free?

Volunteer Bryn Hennesey was there at the Grove Street Homeless Shelter the night five heroic firefighters died at the scene. Among them was her husband, Adam.

Now a terrifying absence of memory has her wondering if she might, in some way, be responsible. Garrett Edmonds' wife, Molly, was the only female firefighter to perish in the blaze. He was supposed to protect the woman he loved.Now she's the one who's died a hero. How can he go on in the face of such unbearable loss? And what started the fire that destroyed the dreams and futures of so many? Investigators are stumped. But someone knows the answer..."

Author Deborah Raney

 So, now you know a little about Deb. Here's her recipe for Egg Nog Cornbread, which I'm sure you want to try. If you have an iron skillet, try making it in that to pop into your oven.

Deb's actual cornbread in her actual kitchen

From her Facebook page:

Except for the eggnog and adding a little more sugar, I used the recipe from the back of the Quaker Cornmeal box: 

1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix till blended. Add: 1 cup dairy eggnog, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 1 beaten egg. Mix just till dry ingredients are moistened. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

As you see from the photo, she used a French Corning Ware dish. 


And because Deb is in the Big Honkin' Chicken Club (I think she may be president--this is a club Brandilyn Collins started because there were people who were too scared to read her books,) I am changing my list of recipes from RECIPES TO DIE FOR (this is a title of one of my unpublished stories...) to RECIPES FOR GOOD EATIN' . Who knows? I may change that title again. 

Enjoy! 

Crystal, writin' it all down