Made this skillet cornbread to a) go alongside my butternut squash chili and b) utilize my pimpin' new cast iron skillet that Mike and Jamie gave me for my birthday.
(note: chiles added for artistic effect only)
It's kind of a semi-homemade trick, but amped up a little bit (plus, if the Washington Post approves of using the boxed mix, then I feel justified). I used 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix, mixed in the requisite amount of milk and eggs, and then threw in some fresh CSA corn that I cut off the cobs and sauteed quickly in some butter (2 ears). I used the 10.5 inch skillet.
I used this method of skillet-baked cornbread: while you're preheating the oven, throw the skillet in there to heat up, too. When you're ready to put the batter in, take the skillet out, throw a tablespoon or two of butter in there so it melts and coats the bottom/sides of the pan, then top it off with the batter and shove it back in the oven. Makes the crust super crispy and delicious!