DADS' LATIN AMERICAN CORNBREAD, easy-peasy, low sugar/salt, no yeast

Perfect Fathers' Day breakfast, barbecue side or picnic...

American Cornbread with a Latin twist: Cornbread with Chilli, Chives & Niblets

photo 10/3/16

FIRST POSTED 2015 AS CORNBREAD WITH CHILLI, ONIONS  & NIBLETS

Bold flavours and combinations seldom go amiss when it comes to guys and this wonderful cornbread fits the bill.  Classic American Cornbread, made with coarse cornmeal called polenta (see notes below) is stuffed with chilli, spring onions and corn niblets bringing a hit of heat and delicate crunchiness to a savoury tender bread.  

The cornbread browns to burnished beauty; the texture somehow is both light and dense. It probably leans more towards cake than bread but without the sweetness.  Which is no bad thing.

It scores high in the health stakes: barely any sugar, low-salt and no yeast.  And it takes just 10 mins to prepare.  

Eaten warm, it is a joy served with piping hot coffee for breakfast/brunch.  It is equally fabulous at room temperature on the barbecue buffet.  For a picnic, bake and transport in muffin tins.

For a change, replace or supplement corn niblets with ham/cooked bacon and/or cheese.

Produces: 10 thick slices or 12 good-sized muffins
Cost: around £3.00

Use a 22 cm/1.3 litre/2lb loaf tin or a similar sized cast iron skillet, or well-greased or lined muffin tins.  Double the recipe and bake in a 28x33cm/11x13in rectangular pan.

Ingred:

140g/5oz plain white flour mixed with a tsp of baking powder 
125g/4.4oz coarse cornmeal/polenta, organic if poss  
1 Tbsp sugar (opt)
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp (yes, tbsp) baking powder

70g/2.5oz butter, melted and cooled OR half butter, half light vegetable oil
2 med eggs
200 ml milk 

125g fresh or drained tinned sweetcorn kernels
3-4 spring onions sliced thinly on the diagonal, green and white OR 3-4 tbsp chopped chives OR a mixture of both
1-2 red chillis to taste, membranes & seeds removed, finely diced OR 1/2-1 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 tsp pepper
4 oz/110 gm grated strong cheddar (opt)

Method:
      Preheat oven to 190C/170fan/375F/gas 5

1. Generously grease pan;  fit a strip of greaseproof paper on the bottom, extending at the ends, for easy removal 
2. Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl
3. Whisk eggs with milk; add melted butter, corn, spring onions, chillis & pepper; stir well 
4. Tip wet ingred. into dry; combine loosely but evenly.  Lumpy is fine except in the case of organic polenta which has not been pre-cooked, in which case mix thoroughly but not vigorously. 
5. Rest 10-15 mins 
6. Scrape into tin, levelling it off with a spatula
6. Bake 30-35 min until golden and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.  
6. Run a knife around the inside of the tin and turn onto a wire rack to cool.

Comment:
'The best I have ever had - the burst of chilli against the backdrop of corn was wonderful.' Political Agent


Variation: Cornbread Muffins with Ham, Chilli & Niblets

 Corn Muffins without garnish

1. Replace onions with a generous handful of chopped ham
2. Mix ham with niblets and chillis; hold back about 1/4 cup for garnish
3. Proceed as in step 3
4. Scoop into a well greased 12-hole muffin tin (67 uses a spring loaded ice cream scoop); scatter with garnish (cupcake liners can also be used)
5. Bake 20-25mins 
6. Rest 5 mins in tin; run a knife around the inside of each muffin hole, turn out onto a wire rack to cool

Tips:

• Common wheat can be replaced with spelt flour 
• If you liked this you will also like Bacon & Corn Savoury Pancakes, portable & perfect for lunchboxes & Sweetcorn, Spelt & Polenta pancakes with soup or for brunch
• Cornbread keeps several days and toasts beautifully.
• Frozen corn is cheaper than tinned but not as crisp. 

Processed & organic
Cornmeal/Polenta  

Note:

Cornmeal, also known as polenta, is the key to the dish; it looks like coarsely ground yellow flour.  There are two varieties - instant, which is pre-cooked, and organic, which is unprocessed. (Cornflour/starch is not cornmeal/polenta.)

More cornbread on NavBar: Recipes 1/Baking

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This recipe has been developed by B  Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises and may not be reproduced, in any form, without the author's written permission.