Hatch Green Chile & Cheese Cornbread

The weather has FINALLY turned cool here in Texas and I’m loving it!  When I heard that “Favorite Son” was coming home to visit for the day and bringing a friend, I decided the nice cool weather called for some good old comfort food!  I love cooking on Sundays and having the whole family over.  We call it Sunday Supper.

I put on a big pot of beef stew and baked this Hatch Green Chile Cornbread.  Both were outstanding, and I’ll post the stew soon.  For now, here is the cornbread.  It was moist, cheesy and had just a bit of heat from the chilis.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Hatch Chile/Cheese Cornbread

Hatch Chile/Cheese Cornbread

Ingredients

• 1 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼  teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1 ½  tablespoons  sugar
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 1-1/4 cups buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
• about 1-½ cups frozen corn (or fresh if you have it)
• ¼-½  cup chopped Hatch green chiles

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Place butter in a cast iron skillet and place in oven to melt.  In a medium-sized bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the egg, sugar, oil and butter­milk.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir, just to combine.  Do not overmix.  Quickly stir in the cheese, corn and chiles.
• When the butter has melted and the pan is very hot, pour in batter…it should ­sizzle as it goes into the skillet. Immediately transfer it to the oven and bake until light brown around the edges, about 25 minutes. Cut in wedges and serve warm.

If you like this recipe, feel free to Tweet it, Facebook it, or just email it by clicking the “share” button below. 🙂

SaveSave

SaveSave

Pot Roast w/Root Veggies

When the weather turns cold, it’s time to put on a pot roast! It’s comfort food, plain and simple. Brown up your meat (I like to use Chuck Roast), then slow cook it in liquid in a covered dish. Slow cooking tenderizes the fibers of the meat, and the liquid exchanges its flavor with that of the beef. The result is fork tender, succulent meat surrounded by a rich gravy. Can we say YUM?

I’ve tried lots of different recipes over the years, and while they are all good, my family agreed that this one stands out as one of the best we’ve had!  A whole head of garlic (not just a clove, but the WHOLE head) gets browned up along with veggies and tomato paste (don’t skip the rutabaga and parsnips…they add a wonderful sweetness). Then the meat is added along with red wine, broth and herbs. Simmered together, they create an infused gravy that is worthy of a big loaf of french bread to soak it all up! Stay warm, and eat well everyone!

Pot Roast w/Root Veggies

First, get a good sear on your meat… I like to use Chuck Roast!

 

Veggies and gravy are ready for the meat!

 

Pot Roast w/Root Veggies

Adapted from the New York Times

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds boneless beef chuck roast
•  Kosher salt and black pepper
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 red onions, quartered
• 4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 stalks celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 rutabaga, peeled and cut into 12 to 16 pieces, about a pound
• 8 cremini mushrooms, halved
• 2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 WHOLE head of garlic, top cut off to expose cloves
• ¾ cup tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 sprigs rosemary
• 1 ½ cups red wine, preferably cabernet
• 4 cups beef broth

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Season meat generously with salt & pepper. On stove top, heat oil in a large Dutch oven, or other heavy roasting pan with a lid, over medium-high heat. Sear the meat until a dark crust forms, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove meat to a plate, reduce the heat to medium, and add butter to the pan. Melt the butter, add the whole head of garlic along with vegetables, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom of the pot until the vegetables start to color, 8 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until it darkens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add bay leaves & rosemary along with the wine, and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced to a thick gravy consistency, 5 to 7 minutes. Return meat to the pot, add the broth, then cover, and transfer to the oven. Cook until meat is fork tender, checking after about 2 and a half hours. Discard bay leaves and rosemary stems. Squeeze any garlic cloves remaining in their skins into the stew and discard the skins.

Liz’s Tidbits:

• When cooked the full length of time, the veggies do become soft.  If you prefer them not so soft, you can brown them them up and add them later in the cooking process, maybe an hour or so before it’s ready.
• This can also be cooked in a slow cooker. On the stove top, sear meat in pan. Transfer to the slow cooker, and using the same pan, follow all instructions through reducing the gravy.  Add back into slow cooker with the meat and cook on low setting for 5-6 hours or until fork tender.
• As an alternative to the stove top, the meat can also be browned in a 450° oven for about 7 minutes each side.

If you like this recipe, feel free to Tweet it, Facebook it, or just email it by clicking the “share” button below. 🙂