Burst Blueberry Cornmeal Skillet Cake with Salted Honey Butter

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, plus 2 tablespoons for the honey butter
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal, fine or medium grind
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup buttermilk, or 3/4 cup plain yogurt thinned with a splash of milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 lemon, zested
• 2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw if frozen; divided)
• 2 tbsp honey
• Flaky sea salt, for finishing

Steps

1. 1

   Heat the oven to 375°F. Set a 10-inch cast-iron or oven-safe skillet over medium heat and melt the 1/2 cup butter. Let it keep going past melted until it foams, quiets, and smells like toasted hazelnuts, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour most of it into a large bowl to cool slightly, leaving about a tablespoon in the skillet to grease it. Take the skillet off the heat.

2. 2

   Whisk the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and kosher salt together in a separate bowl. Into the bowl of brown butter, whisk the sugar, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and lemon zest until smooth. The butter should be warm, not hot, or the eggs will notice.

3. 3

   Fold the dry ingredients into the wet with a spatula until just combined. A few streaks of flour are fine; overmixing is not. Gently fold in 1 1/2 cups of the blueberries.

4. 4

   Scrape the batter into the warm skillet and smooth the top. Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup blueberries over the surface. They will sink a little and burst on top, which is the whole point.

5. 5

   Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges pull away from the pan and turn deep golden, the top is cracked in places, and a toothpick in the center comes out with moist crumbs but no wet batter. The berries should be collapsed and bubbling at the edges.

6. 6

   While the cake bakes, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter with the honey in a small saucepan or the microwave, and stir to combine.

7. 7

   Let the cake rest in the skillet 10 minutes. It needs the time, and so do you. Pour the honey butter over the warm surface, letting it run into the cracks and berry craters, then finish with a pinch of flaky salt. Serve warm, straight from the skillet.