Mexican Beer Bread

I was born in the ’60s and grew up in abundant times. Gas was cheap – under a dollar a gallon. Big discount stores were just starting to gain traction in our area. My grandparents would come to visit us in Iowa and they would bring a cooler so they could load up on corn oil margarine for 14 cents a pound. In spite of this abundance, I grew up to become a food hoarder. As is traditional, I blame my mother. I don’t know why, but both of us seem to operate under the impression that one must have at least a year’s supply of food on hand. We have larders of canned goods in the basement and large freezers full of bargain items, garden harvests and leftovers saved for a rainy day.

My friend Sarah recently told me she does not have a freezer separate from her fridge – and in fact, the freezer in her fridge is nearly empty because she buys just enough groceries for the week. My stars. This is a concept so completely unfamiliar to me that I looked at her as though she might be from Mars or Mongolia or perhaps some strange Baltic state. Just enough food for a week? How does that even work?

So, dear friends, I have a goal. And I shall state it out loud, with a balled-up fist: “I hereby commit to using up 50% of my food stash! Beginning with cornmeal!” I found three-fourths of a container of cornmeal in my “lazy Susan” this week, and a quick recipe search on www.tastefullysimple.com resulted in a particularly delicious pan of Mexican Beer Bread. Check out the recipe below, and I’m counting on you to keep me on track with my goal!

j*a*N*e

Mexican Beer Bread

Submitted by Delcine Hoeninger (IL)

Ingredients

• Bountiful Beer Bread Mix^®
• 12 oz. beer
• 15 oz. can creamed corn
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 4 oz. can whole green chilies
• 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 4 Tbsp. melted butter
• Seasoned Salt

Directions

Combine first 4 ingredients in large bowl. Pour half the batter in greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Separate chilies into strips; lay on batter. Sprinkle with cheese. Spread remaining batter on top to cover chilies and cheese; drizzle with butter. Sprinkle with Seasoned Salt. Bake at 375° for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly; cut into squares. Makes 14 servings.

Mexican Beer Bread

Testing Notes:

• First off, this recipe makes a lot! So it’s a great recipe when you have hungry hordes to feed, or plan to freeze half. It’s a great partner for chili!
• I had a can of diced green chilies in the larder, so I subbed that for the whole green chilies. It worked very well.
• I subbed medium Cheddar for the sharp, since that’s what I had on hand.
• To divide the batter in half, just eyeball it. You’ll be close enough!
• To get the second layer of batter over the top, I dolloped spoonfuls of the batter over the green chilies until the pan was almost completely covered; then I took the back of my spoon and gently smoothed it out. This way I was able to accomplish the task without mucking up the chilie/cheese layer.
• I recently bought a pepper mill for my Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt, and I love it. It allows us to get all the great flavor with less, so we save money and I’m sure our hearts are happier with the reduced sodium. You certainly wouldn’t have to grind the salt for this recipe … I’m just sharing newfound fun! In recipes, I usually use Seasoned Salt whole; at the table or as a topping we usually grind it.
• I melted the butter in the microwave and promptly forgot about it. About 30 minutes into the bake time, I sat bolt upright on the couch and shouted, “Butter!” After peeling my family off the ceiling and assuring them they need not call 9-1-1, I pulled the nearly baked bread out of the oven and poured on the butter. It would have been better to do that at the beginning, but it turned out fine for us. The top looked a little funny, but the taste was great.
• The texture of the baked bread is somewhere between corn bread and corn pudding. My husband doesn’t usually care much for corn bread, but he loved this. My daughter usually loves corn bread, green chilies and cheese, yet this bread was not her favorite. I pressed her for a “why” but didn’t really get a good answer. I suspect it simply wasn’t texturally pleasing to her.
• To use up the leftovers, we have been slicing off three-quarter-inch slabs and sautéing it in a non-stick frying pan. Delish! In fact, I could go for some right now …

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