Grind the lotus seeds in a food processor or blender until fine. Sift the flour prior to use.

Preheat the oven to 375 °F. In the meantime, mix the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, and melted butter until uniform.

Add hot water to the lotus flour and mix immediately. This will form a thick paste (resist the urge to add additional water).

Thoroughly mix the wet ingredients with the flour paste, breaking up any and all clumps.

Whisk in the dry ingredients until they are evenly incorporated. If there is anything you want to add to the mixture, do so at this stage. Immediately pour into a buttered dish. In this recipe, we used a 5.5x5.5x1.25-inch ceramic baking dish.

Bake for ~25 minutes or until just set. Allow it to cool before eating. Shortly after baking, the bread will have a chewier texture than normal cornbread, but after sitting for a few hours, it will transition to a more crumbly texture.