Zarela's Savory Corn Bread (or a variation thereof)
Our favorite Mexican eatery while we lived in NYC was Zarela on Second Avenue, which, sadly, shuttered its doors a few years after we moved. In addition to the amazing margaritas and Red-Snapper Hash, the Savory Corn Bread was a must-order item. It was moist and flavorful, thanks in large part to the corn kernels and roasted poblanos. I’m sure the two sticks of butter played a role, as well. If you want to follow Zarela Martinez’s exact recipe, click here. While I’ve made her recipe in the past and loved it, as most of you have surely realized by now, I’m not a big butter user. So I used the Zarela recipe as inspiration for the recipe below but also combined steps from a NYT recipe I like. I used olive oil in place of butter and all agreed it was super moist and delicious. We slathered each piece of corn bread with some butter when it was still warm, which added the perfect touch. I served it alongside Vegetarian Chili last night for the ultimate fireside dinner.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
4 tablespoons butter, olive oil, lard or bacon drippings (I used olive oil)
1 ½ cups medium-grind cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ¼ cups milk, more if needed
2 poblano or jalapeño chiles, roasted, seeded and chopped
4-6 oz. white cheddar cheese, shredded
3 cups corn kernels, frozen, fresh or canned (I used frozen fire-roasted kernels from Whole Foods, but during corn season, I would use kernels from freshly grilled corn on the cob)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put fat in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or in an 8-inch square baking pan. Place pan in oven.
Meanwhile, combine dry ingredients in a bowl.
Mix eggs into milk, then add to dry ingredients. Add chopped chiles, shredded cheese and corn kernels and stir all ingredients together, combining with a few swift strokes. If mixture seems dry, add another tablespoon or two of milk.
When fat and oven are hot, remove skillet or pan from oven, pour batter into it and smooth out top. Return pan to oven. Bake about 30 minutes, until top is lightly browned and sides have pulled away from pan; a toothpick inserted into center will come out clean. Serve hot or warm.
