I made Ina Garten's easy corn bread, and the dish was so perfect that I'm going to make it for every Thanksgiving

I found the corn-bread recipe while leafing through the republished version of "The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook," which originally came out in 1999. I knew it'd be perfect for Friendsgiving. 

In the description of the dish, Garten says she was inspired by The New York Times' Melissa Clark's corn bread with brown butter. 

"Since I can't pass up any recipe for corn bread, I decided to test mine with brown butter too," Garten writes. "Best corn bread I've ever made! 

That was all I needed to hear — time to get baking! 

To make Garten's corn bread, which serves 10 to 12 people, you'll need: 

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk 
• 1 cup fine cornmeal (Garten says this makes moister corn bread than medium grind)
• 1 cup sugar 
• ½ pound unsalted butter 
• 2 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten 
• 2 tablespoons baking powder 

I continued to heat the butter until it became browned but not burned, listening to Garten's advice to "watch it very carefully!" 

I whisked the milk into the butter, according to Garten's recipe. 

I have to admit, I forgot to lightly beat the eggs together before throwing them into the mixture — but it didn't seem to affect the corn bread in any way. 

I also threw in the baking powder and some kosher salt. 

Barely five minutes had passed, and my batter was almost ready. 

Per Garten's instructions, I stirred everything together with a rubber spatula until it was just combined. The "Barefoot Contessa" star notes that it's OK if the batter looks a little lumpy. 

Garten's recipe calls for the batter to sit for 15 minutes. She said this step is essential to getting the best corn bread possible, so don't try to skip it.

Make sure you don't wipe out your cast-iron skillet after melting the butter. Just throw the batter right in. 

Garten's recipe says to bake the corn bread for 35 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. After 35 minutes, I stuck a knife in the middle and it came out clean, so I knew it was ready. 

One thing to note: If you're using an 11 ½-inch skillet, Garten recommends baking your corn bread for only 25 to 30 minutes. 

Garten's brown-butter skillet corn bread definitely makes for a gorgeous centerpiece at the Thanksgiving table (we all know no one really cares about the turkey). 

But would it taste as good as it looked? 

I could write an essay on how much I love this corn bread. It was so moist and fluffy, with the sweet and savory elements working together in perfect harmony. We were all stuffed, but everyone at the table couldn't resist getting seconds of the bread. 

"The salt really brought out all the flavors," my friend Oliver said. "10/10, would recommend." 

"So delicious," my fellow taste tester Kayla added. "The outside had a nice salty and crunchy texture, while the inside was moist and sweet." 

There's no doubt in my mind that Garten's brown-butter skillet corn bread was the star of Friendsgiving. It was perfectly baked and still tasted just as moist when we ate leftovers on the second and third days.

And for a novice cook like me who never bakes, I couldn't believe how easy and foolproof it was to make. Seeing that corn bread come out of the oven, so beautiful and golden, made me feel as if I was about to get a Paul Hollywood handshake.   

Garten's recipe has won a permanent spot in my holiday cooking repertoire.