What is Underneath?



Have you ever been presented with some food that you can't see?  All you recognize is the mashed potatoes, pie crust or corn bread topping.  As you plunge in to unearth, hidden treasure, how do you react?  Would you rather know ahead of time?  Do you like being kept in the dark?


I didn't mean to hide the simmering meat and vegetables under the corn meal crust.  In fact, I planned to drop it in globs but I had enough to completely cover the rest of the food.


I, of course knew what was below the rather boring crust but I did not expect to be overcome with a delicious aroma.  Aroma, to me, means brown sugar, cinnamon, apples baking.  It does not signify chopped meat and peppers.


This time, it completely fooled me.   It smelled so good, I could hardly wait to taste the richness, awaiting me.  Whatever the reason, these flavors blended beautifully.


What is underneath? (adapted from Southern Food)
Ingredients:

1/2 cup finely chopped red bell peppers
1/2 cup gluten-free flour mixture
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1 finely chopped onion
2 cups ground beef
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup tomato sauce (8 ounce can)
2 tablespoons chili sauce
2 teaspoons salt
dash lemon pepper or other seasoned pepper
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 egg
1/2 cup Rice milk

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400°.
Sauté pepper, onion, and beef in fat from beef in skillet until beef is well browned. Stir in tomato sauce,chili sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, seasoned pepper. Put mixture into 1 1/2 quart casserole.
Stir together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, remaining salt and thyme in a bowl; add egg, milk, and oil. Stir until smooth. Top the meat mixture with the batter; bake, uncovered, until the cornmeal is slightly brown and firm to touch, about 1 hour.

Loosen cornmeal with a knife around edges, turn on serving plate with top side down.

Serves 8.

Linked to See Ya In the Gumbo               The Gallery of Favorites


Comments

  1. Michelle BNovember 21, 2011 at 10:58 AM

    Thanks for linking up! My favorite part of dishes like this is the topping. I don't tend to think about what's underneath til I get there!

    ReplyDelete
  2. laxsupermomNovember 21, 2011 at 3:09 PM

    Sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. MiriamNovember 22, 2011 at 3:20 PM

    Looks great! I'm sure I could make this with fake meat. Happy Thanksgiving! Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters

    ReplyDelete
  4. Angie's RecipesNovember 23, 2011 at 12:16 AM

    This looks totally comforting and tasty!

    ReplyDelete
  5. April J HarrisNovember 24, 2011 at 1:37 PM

    I really like the sound of this, Chaya. It's similar to our Shepherd's Pie in England, but with a fantastic cornbread topping! I'm looking forward to giving it a try. Thank you for sharing it with the Gallery of Favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Alea MilhamNovember 25, 2011 at 1:25 AM

    This looks like a delicious recipe. It looks like a wonderful way to repurpose leftovers. Thank for sharing your recipe with the Hearth and Soul Hop.

    ReplyDelete

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