Jalapeno Cornbread

This cornbread is perfect on its own, but makes a perfect side dish for any BBQ meal! I've even made this for a twist at brunch. The combination of spicy, savory, and a bit of sweet make it irresistible.

Ingredients:

1 cup Flour

1 cup Corn Meal

⅓ cup Brown Sugar

2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Kosher Salt

2 seeded and diced Jalapeños

1 cup of frozen corn

1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes or ½ tsp Cayenne Pepper (optional)

¼ cup melted Butter

2 Tbsp Butter (not melted)

1 ⅓ cup Buttermilk

2 Eggs

½ cup chopped Chives (optional - but yummy)

Method:

Place the cast iron pan into the hove. Preheat to 400℉

Mix together all the dry ingredients. Add the jalapeños and frozen corn. Mix together.

In a measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and chives.

Once the oven and cast iron skillet are preheated, add the 2 tablespoons of non-melted butter to the pan, close the oven, and let melt for 1 minute.

While melting, combine the buttermilk mixture with the dry ingredients. Take the cast iron skillet with the butter, out of the oven, and immediately pour the batter into the pan. It will be thick.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Notes:

If you don’t want to use a castiron pan, a 9x13 baking dish works. You don’t have to use the non-melted butter or preheat. Instead, spray with cooking spray before adding the batter.

Adding your jalapeños and corn to the dry ingredients ensures they won't drop to the bottom of the bread but are nicely dispersed throughout.

I like adding cayenne pepper for a different level of heat. It is up to you and without it the cornbread is delicious.

You can also add 1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese to the recipe to make it more decadent. Make sure the cheddar cheese is sharp. Mild cheddar cheese doesn't impart much additional flavor. If you want to add more spice, pepper jack cheese is also an option.