Cornbread And Other Matters

First of all, it is great with great reluctance that I post a link to the Mission Menus Challenge Site.  My two minute video is up and I am cringing.  *Cringe*  But thank you all again for voting for me.  I had a fantastic experience.  Friday they will reveal the winner.

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I wish I could jump into the whole baking and heartier food-cooking season that is technically supposed to be underway right now, but it's hard to use the oven when it's 92 degrees outside.  The weather here in southeast Mississippi is ridiculously hot and dry.  I don't think we've had rain in 40 days.  (I just picked 40 because it seemed like a number that sounds like a really long time, but now that I think about it, I am pretty sure that number is not an exaggeration by much.  That's how dry it is here.)

I am talking dry, depressing fall weather.  I am completely uninspired to cook or bake. 

Sad times.

I did manage to pull myself off the couch and make some delicious cornbread the other day, and I think it's worthy of posting here.  It is a twist on my grandmother's broccoli cornbread recipe, which uses cottage cheese.  The texture is almost pudding like, probably because of all the eggs.  

This would go well with chili, soups and stews, but none of that stuff is happening here right now.

This recipe uses a cornbread mix, and I usually use Jiffy because it's slightly sweet, but you could certainly substitute another brand.  

I used a 10 x 10 inch pan for the picture, but I think this would work better in a 9 x 9 inch pan for a thicker piece.

Mexican Cornbread

Printable Recipe

4 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup melted butter

3/4 cup small curd cottage cheese

1 (8.5-ounce) box Jiffy corn muffin mix

1/4 cup milk

1 medium chopped onion

1 cup shredded Monterey jack, cheddar or pepper jack cheese

1 (7-ounce) can diced green chiles

1 (14-ounce) can corn, drained (not creamed corn)

Stir together all ingredients by hand in a large mixing bowl
just until combined.  Spray a 9 x 9 inch
square casserole dish with cooking spray and spread the batter in evenly.  Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes or
until cornbread is done and golden brown.

Some Good Food Linkage

I have been doing some major cooking and baking lately for different events.  Here are some really tasty recipes from around the blogosphere and Internet.

This is my gift to you today.  

I found this recently on One Perfect Bite, even though it was an older post.  I made it for our Bible school week at church, and it was gone in like two minutes.  I'm not kidding.  

These were my tweaks:

-I made it in two loaf pans because I cannot find the bottom to my springform pan.  In  my house, bottoms of springform pans are kind of like socks--they just disappear.  I lined the loaf pan with plastic wrap, then packed in my ice cream mixture, then I put the crumb topping on top.  When you turn in out, there will be a crust on the bottom. 

-I drizzled it with Peanut Butter-Chocolate Magic Shell, then I sprinkled with toffee bits.

If you've never checked out Mary's food blog, you need to.  I think she is one of the hardest working food bloggers out there.  She is a wonderful writer as well, and I enjoy reading her stories. 

Triple Decker Strawberry Cake from Southern Living.  We all love this in my family.

I make it just like the recipe says to, and it turns out wonderful every time.
 

Oh my.  Just this past week I clicked on over to The Sweets Life, and I saw this pasta dish, although, in my head, I'm calling it a salad.  I quickly looked at the ingredients list, and I had everything on hand to make it, even the fresh mozzarella, which is something I don't keep around.

I  loved it.  My husband loved it.  My daughter loved it.  Nobody else got to try it because we kind of hogged it all up, but you bet I'll be making it again. 

My tweak:

-I used orzo pasta because I was out of spiral pasta.  This made it more salad-y to me.  I put it in a big bowl and we ate it cold, right out of the fridge.

I don't think I changed anything else.  Don't leave out the walnuts.  They were yummy.

Burned Peach Ice Cream from Alton Brown.

Making homemade peach ice cream is very uncharacteristic of me, because I gravitate toward caramel-peanut butter-chocolate-swirly concoctions, but I had a bag of frozen peaches in my freezer that needed to be used.  

Here are my tweaks:

-I used all brown sugar.

-I used vanilla extract.

-I thawed my 16-ounce bag of peaches and placed them on a baking sheet along with a tablespoon or so of melted butter, and two or so tablespoons of light brown sugar.  I roasted them in the oven at about 400 degrees, stirring them several times until they were quite brown around the edges.

Then I proceeded as directed in the recipe.  

Like I said, fruity ice cream is never my first choice, but I really enjoyed this.

Homemade Granola Bars from Ina Garten.

Loved.  And so did everyone who ate them.

And I don't know what is happening to my taste buds, but I'm really liking dried fruit lately.

Except raisins.  Never.  NEVER, I SAY!  

But dried mango, cranberries, blueberries?  Yes.  Give me more. Except dried blueberries are expensive.  Has anyone noticed that?

So these are my tweaks:

-I used quick-cooking oatmeal instead of old fashioned.

-I substituted dried blueberries and mangoes for the dried fruit in her recipe.

-I may or may not have added in some sunflower seeds.  If I did, I am sure that it was no more than about 1/4 cup.

-I used walnuts instead of almonds.

But besides that, it's practically the same.

My Thanksgiving Menu

For Thanksgiving this year, my husband and I are going to his brother's house, which means I won't be hosting the dinner, I'll just be supplementing. 

I am 39 years-old and I have never actually hosted a Thanksgiving meal myself.  Next year, it's my year.   Mark it down.  Put out the flyers.  Lorie's hosting dinner even if she is the only person who shows up.

But for this year, I have a list of things to bring and here they are:

Two smoked turkey breasts.  My hubby will do these.  And I say that very loosely.  I bought them, thawed them, will remove the wrapper, inject them, season them, clean up all the raw turkey blood/juice that will get on my counter and then he will put them on the grill and smoke them.   Then I'll insert the thermometer and let him know when they're done.  Then he'll remove them to a pan that I've handed him and he'll bring them into me and I'll cover them with foil.   Later on, I'll wash the pan.  I'll probably clean up the grill, too.  And he'll get all the credit.

Two coconut pies.  I've never made a coconut pie before.  I have a zillion recipes, but my hubby said he wanted an old- fashioned coconut cream pie with meringue.  I am a whipped cream girl, so after much searching, the two recipes I've settled on are both from Emeril Lagasse.  Best Ever Coconut Cream Pie for me because it has coconut milk in it and Coconut Cream Pie for hubby because it has meringue and seems old-fashioned.  I'll let you know how they turn out.  I have already made six Perfect Pie Crusts and they are waiting for me in the fridge and freezer.

Italian Cream Cake.  My brother-in-law Larry just has to have this at Thanksgiving, or so says my sister-in-law, Tamara.  My mother-in-law usually makes this but the torch has been passed to me.

Mashed Potatoes.  I would reeeeaaallly like to make these mashed potatoes, but my in-laws and hubby are really into traditional Thanksgiving food, so roasted corn in the mashed potatoes would probably not be a good idea.  I'll just make the regular ones.  You really should try them sometime, though.  I don't mean to brag, but they are really, really delicious.  You could leave out the cilantro and chipotle and they would be awesome covered in gravy.

Brown Gravy.  For my hubby.  He doesn't do giblet gravy.  My mom makes some killer giblet gravy and I love it.  But I won't be with my mom. :o(  I've already bought my McCormick brown gravy packets.  [Foodies shudder everywhere.] ;o)

Italian Salad.  Just wanted something fresh and raw.  I know it's not Thanksgiving-y, but oh well.

Here are a couple of other recipes I wanted to link you up to.  For the last three or four years, I have been eyeing this recipe in one of my Pampered Chef cookbooks, but have never gotten around to making it.  Last night at our Thanksgiving supper at church, the fabulous Tonya Bedwell brought one that she had made.  I seriously had to hold my self back from eating a second piece.  Total yumminess.

Also, my own sweet Amber made this Turtle Pumpkin Pie and even though I am temperamental about pumpkin, it was really, really good.   She's turning all domestic-y and the transformation brings me happiness, joy, and lots of snickering behind her back. 

So that's what I'm bringing.  I don't know if I'll be blogging this week or not.  Sugar Plum said she will be live pie blogging on Wednesday, so I'll be checking in with her as well as all of my other foodie friends.  If I was a decent blogger, I would live blog, too.  I'll have to think about it.

And for your viewing pleasure...