I'm back...with a recipe

 Oh my goodness, where have I been? I haven’t posted anything here in ages.

Well, actually I can tell you where I’ve been. I’ve been training for, raising money for and completing a marathon! My first marathon and I tackled the hills of San Francisco for it. It really hogged up my time for a while there. But that’s done and I’m on to the next thing.

I’ve got about two months in which I’m not actively training for a specific event (my off-season, if you will) so I’m going to do Shaun T’s T25 program. Then in late January I will start training for my Ragnar Relay in June – 200 miles, 2 days, 12 people. We’re going to run from Madison, WI to Chicago.

And I also plan to complete about 3 triathlons next summer. 

But this is supposed to be about food. Last night I made a newish recipe. Growing up my mom used to make tamale casserole (I’ve also heard it called tamale pie). I loved it. It was one of two casseroles from my childhood that make me feel warm and fuzzy. Unfortunately it’ll take more time to figure out how to do the chicken enchilada casserole I love so much – the dairy-free part keeps getting in the way. 

But tamale casserole was totally doable, once I found the right vegan cornbread recipe. And I did it. I found it with the help of my good friend Google. I halved the recipe from Post Punk Kitchen. It’s moist with a crunchy crust and that golden yellow color and a little sweetness. Super yum.

This dish turned out just the way I remember it and got high marks from the family (including my uber picky one). 

Tamale Casserole

Filling:

½ red bell pepper, diced

½ green bell pepper, diced

1 jalapeno, diced (optional)

½ onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb ground meat – I use turkey

1 can tomato sauce

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1 tbsp chili powder

Salt & pepper to taste

Cornbread topping:

1 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp maple syrup

1 cup soymilk (I actually used coconut)

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat over to 350. Spray a 9x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Brown meat over medium high heat in a large pan with peppers, onion and garlic. Drain if necessary. Add tomato sauce, corn and chili powder. Reduce heat and let simmer while you prepare the topping.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and the vinegar and set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt).

Add the oil and maple syrup to the milk mixture. Whisk with a wire whisk or a fork until it is foamy and bubbly, about 2 minutes.

Pour the wet ingredient into the dry and mix together using a large wooden spoon or a firm spatula.

Pour filling into baking dish. Immediately pour cornbread topping over meat mixture. Spread to cover.

Bake 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Serve immediately.

Approximately 6 servings