Jalapeno Cornbread

We kinda sorta had a cold front last weekend.


Yea...and now it's back in the 80's but whatever...it'll get cold again and I'm going to prepare you.  Not with soup this time (not yet anyway) but with a little somethin' somethin' to serve with that inevitable chili you're going to make come winter.  Yup, today I'm sharing my go-to cornbread recipe.  You're welcome :)

So I was never really a big fan of cornbread when I was a youngin'.  I always found it dry and bland and just...blah.  But a couple of years ago I had a vision of the perfect cornbread.  I wanted the recipe I found to contain three things:  cheese, jalapenos, and sauteed corn.  I firmly believed these three elements would create my ideal cornbread chunk and thus my search began.  Eventually I found a recipe close enough (minus the sauteing), tweaked it to my liking, and alas a star was born.

I love love love the textures going on with the kernels and bits of jalapenos dotted throughout and little pockets of cheese tucked in- this recipe meets all my reqs.  All that's missing now is the chili.    



Jalapeno Cornbread

Makes one 8x8-inch pan

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels (about 2 ears)

2 fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced
1 1/4 cups stone-ground cornmeal
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup nonfat buttermilk

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place an 8x8-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray in oven 5 minutes or until heated.

Heat olive oil in small skillet over medium heat.  Add corn and jalapenos, sauteing until corn is golden brown, about 7 minutes. 

Combine cornmeal, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk; make a well in center of mixture. Combine buttermilk, cheese, butter, honey, oil, and eggs in a small bowl; add to cornmeal mixture. Stir just until combined. Fold in corn and jalapenos.  Spoon mixture into preheated pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean (don't overcook or it will become dry!). Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Adapted from Cooking Light.