Johnny Cakes

Method 1: Mix with just enough water to make an even-textured thick batter. Pour one-quarter cup of batter on dry, hot griddle like you would for pancakes, and cook similarly until golden brown. Method 2: Mix with just enough water to make a thick, slightly crumbly dough. Pat into flat cakes and cook on a dry, hot griddle until golden brown. Historical note: The reason why they're called "johnny cakes" is that when the pioneers were going West across the Plains, they had to cook over an open camp fire at night, and eat left-overs for breakfast and lunch. So, the pioneer women would make a thick corn dough, press the cakes on the flat bottom side of a hoe, and prop the hoe next to the fire so that the cakes could cook (they didn't have griddles-natch!). These cakes would be used on the trail next day for lunch (stashed in your pocket so you could eat it on horseback), and were call "journey cakes", which eventually got corrupted into "johnny cakes".