Gluten-free cornbread muffins

Cornbread Muffin (gluten-free)

There is a wide variety of flours made from mazie. The Best-Ever Wheat and Gluten Free Baking Book lists the following types:
corn flour — used to make cereals, pastas, breads and tortillas
corn grits — coarsely ground from white or yellow corn
cornmeal — comes as both yellow and white meal, often used in Mexican dishes
cornstarch — a refined product made from white corn used as a thickener [IMPORTANT: this is often referred to as ‘cornflour’ in Singapore and other places]
popcorn flour — ‘full of flavour and is similar to cornmeal’, can be used in baking or as coating when frying meats.

I have to admit this description still leaves me rather confused about the differences between corn flour and corn meal. Browsing the descriptions of Bob’s Red Mill products does make things clearer, despite the fact that Bob’s Red Mill offers a mind-boggling array of corn-based flours:
Organic Wholegrain Corn Flour
Golden Masa Harina Corn Flour
White Masa Harina Corn Flour
Fine Grind Cornmeal
Medium Grind Cornmeal
Organic Medium Grind Cornmeal
Coarse Grind Cornmeal
Corn Grits–Polenta
Blue Cornmeal
White Cornmeal

Anyway, I happen to have some Bob’s Red Mill Medium Grind Cornmeal in the fridge, hence my choice of this recipe from The Best-Ever Wheat and Gluten Free Baking Book. Generally, I find that this cornmeal gives a distinctly gritty texture (and very hard grits! you can see them as white flecks in the photo). I dislike crunching on those hard bits so in future I would definitely choose a finer grind.

My postings are lagging so far behind the actual event that I can’t remember the details of the baking process! Mainly, I can’t recall if I added the maple syrup, and if so, how much I used. I have no problems with completely unsweetened muffins, and I have successfully adapted all muffin recipes by simply omitting the sweeteners.

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WET INGREDIENTS

1 cup buttermilk (see substitutes for buttermilk)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup (55g) butter, melted
1/2 cup (60ml) maple syrup

DRY INGREDIENTS

210g yellow cornmeal
65g cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt [omitted]
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 cup plain nuts, chopped [omitted]

Mix wet ingredients. Mix dry ingredients. Add the two together and stir till just combined, do not overbeat.

Spoon into greased muffin tin, or 8- or 9-inch square pan.

Bake in preheated oven at 220°C for 15 minutes. [Can’t remember if I followed the baking instructions precisely, it seems a bit too hot to me, muffins might burn. Standard muffin baking temperature is 180°C.]

Verdict: Nice texture, good taste. For some reason, the cornmeal grits weren’t so obvious to me in this recipe.