Why is corn the best vegetable to talk to? It’s all ears!
I hope you enjoyed that little joke. Some people think corny jokes are bad, but I think they are a-maize-ing!
Okay, I’ll stop now. I must just be feeling a little cheesy today : ) That is why I’m bringing you this recipe for Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread today. It’s corny, and cheesy, with a little bit of a kick. All of my favorite things!
I am a firm believer that this cornbread will make you even more friends than cookies. I know that sounds like a bold claim, but I have evidence. Exhibit A: I once went to a friends house party and instead of bringing booze, I brought over the extra jalapeño cheddar cornbread muffins from a big batch of this recipe. The muffins were devoured, and everyone was asking who the awesome person was that brought the cornbread. New friends: check! Exhibit B: I had a pretty awful first apartment in New York. I won’t go into the details, but it involved an above-ground subway right outside my window, cockroaches, loud heating pipes that would make noise, but not heat, and so much more. So I was checking out a room that was opening in my friends apartment and told her about the jalapeño cheddar cornbread. She later told me that she decided right then could live with them. New apartment: check!
So why is this jalapeño cheddar cornbread so good? Well, we can probably all agree that cornbread is a great thing in general. I always eat chili with a slice of cornbread on the side to sprinkle on top of the chili. But I think we can also agree that we’ve all experienced some rather bad cornbread as well. It often ends up too dry or too bland. I can promise you that this jalapeño cheddar cornbread will not be one of those bad cornbreads. This one turned out so moist, that it was straddling the line between bread and cake. Yet not so moist that it loses that perfect crumble consistency.
Also, no need to worry about it being bland when it is packed with cornmeal, cheese, and jalapeños. The cheese inside the batter contributes to its moistness, while a sprinkling of cheese on top gives it a yummy, satisfying top crust. Like the cheese, the jalapeños are inside and on top of the cornbread. They give it a little spice, plus make for gorgeous presentation.
My apologies for the missing cornbread in the photos. I made this cornbread one evening, but had to wait until the morning to take pictures because of the light. But I needed a slice to eat with my chili for dinner. And then I needed to share some warm goodness with my roommates (since it did get me a room in the apartment, after all). And finally, I needed one last piece before bed as dessert doused in honey, of course. Oops!
- 1 cup all-purpose flou
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1/8 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup milk (or almond milk)
- 1 egg (yolk and white) + 1 egg white, lightly beaten
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup cheddar, grated (plus a little extra to grate on top)
- 1 Tbsp. fresh jalapeno, minced (plus 5 thin slices for garnish)
- Preheat over to 350 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine milk, eggs, and butter.
- Slowly pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients in the large mixing bowl while stirring with a spoon. Stir until the lumps dissolve - careful to not overmix!
- Gently fold in the grated cheddar cheese and minced jalapeños.
- Let the batter sit for 10 minutes.
- Pour batter into a greased 9-inch cast iron skillet (or other baking dish). Sprinkle some grated cheddar on top and garnish with 5 thin slices of jalapeños.
- Bake 30 to 35 minutes - done once the edges begin to brown.
- I made this batch with almond milk since that was all I had in the fridge - it worked great.
- If you do not have a cast iron skillet, use a 9in cake tin or 9x9in square baking tin.