Sunday, October 2, 2016

Mexican Cornbread Casserole




With the cool temperatures finally here, I'm looking for something different for dinner.  Something that goes together easily makes my home smell wonderful and cooks quickly (hey, this cook is busy)!  A friend suggested that I make Mexican Cornbread but that just didn't seem like enough so I started looking around for a heartier version and nothing quite suited me so I went off on my own! 
Here's how is goes...

2 lbs lean ground beef
2 or 3 shakes of red pepper flake
1/8 cup chili powder
salt and  pepper
2 cans Rotel tomatoes
1 can cream corn
1 can whole kernel corn
3 batches of cornbread (a box mix is fine)
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 bunch green onions
sour cream, salsa or Tobasco

Chop the bottom half of the green onions (including the white tips) and add the chopped onion to your ground beef, add chili powder, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and brown in a large skillet.  Drain well and add the meat back into a large stock pot. 

Drain the Rotel but don't press the tomatoes, you want some moisture but not too much. Add the Rotel to the ground beef and keep it cooking over low heat.  I had some cherry tomatoes on hand so I quartered those and added them in (why not right?).

Mix your cornbread. You can make it from scratch or use a box mix - either is fine.  Mix in the cream corn to the cornbread.  Spray your baking dish well and put down about 1/2 the cornbread mix. Top with a sprinkle of shredded cheddar (about 4 ounces), spread the drained whole kernel corn then cover with the ground beef mixture.  Top with the remaining cornbread mix and top with the remaining cheese.

Bake at 350* for 30 - 40 minutes.  I like this with a dollop of sour cream or salsa and garnished with green onions.  You might like it spicier so dash it with Tobasco sauce if you're a hottie!  If you really what to zip this all the way up, add a can of chopped green chilies (drained) and you'll totally kick the flavor to the top of the scale.  I made mine a mild version and it's just yummy!!!