Hmph. Apparently I was thinking of soul cake… oh, well. Any good thing to keep us all merry.
Yes.
Yes. And… In what kindergarten do you learn about slavery? Kindergarten is for colors and numbers and shapes and letters and kissing boys during story time. Have times changed that much?
I think it’s kind of like cornbread but I’ve never eaten anything called hoecake. Don’t know how I know this, I probably read it somewhere. I’m from Alabama.
I’ve never eaten a hoecake/Johnnycake. But reading the descriptions here and on Wikipedia, it kind of reminds me of arepas (from South America) - I only recently tried these when a co-worker brought them to a potluck. The most basic ones are a made from finely ground cornmeal, mixed with water and salt, formed into a patty and fried into a thick bread. Can be stuffed with a filling, or split and used to make sandwiches.
That’s an annoying affectation, you know that? “My wife” or “my partner” is a lot shorter.
On topic, yeah, but just from reading. I’ve never eaten one.
Apparently I do, but I’m not sure how. I too live in the frozen north, but I read a lot as a kid, so that’s probably where I picked it up.
IIRC, traditional hoe cakes always seemed kind of bland to me - just cornmeal and water. Add salt, some sauteed onions mixed in the batter, some leavening, and some bacon fat to fry them in. *Now *you’re talkin. 
My grandma made them all the time during the summer when it was too hot to use the oven. She used bacon grease. I don’t know the traditional method, but it sure was good with a pot of pinto beans and ham.
I wasn’t familiar with the term, but I guessed that it was probably some variant on cornbread. Yup, guess so.
The guess was because the name looks quintessentially American, and there is no food more American than cornbread.
I’m thinking the Jiffy Cornbread packaging used to mention both “Johnnycake” and “Hoecake” in the cooking directions. I’m not sure if it still does.
I’m from Oregon, but I think they sell Jiffy pretty much everywhere.
Molasses?
Never heard of them before now, same with Johnny Cakes.
I’ve never had anything made from Corn Flour either, only ever used corn flour to thicken up a stew.
I think what you call corn flour is more like what we call corn starch here in the US. Is it a really powdery substance with the consistency of powdered/confectioner’s sugar? If so, that’s corn starch and not the same thing hoecakes/jonnycakes are made from. Hoecakes are made from corn meal. Corn meal has a range of textures, but is typically more “sandy” in texture and made from dried corn and is not just the starch extracted from it. Think polenta, whereas corn starch is more like, well, just starch–kind of flour-like but essentially tasteless thickener.
Ahh, thanks for that. Yeah, what I would call corn flour sounds exactly what you refer to as corn starch and I’m familar with Polenta.
Cheers for that, I’ve learned several new things at once.
I didn’t know, but figured being the south it involved cornbread. I would have guessed it was a name for damper had you been from Australia.
Another Virginian, but not old. I do know what hoecakes are and I find them very tasty.