Something for Chris Goodwin's 'corn bread party' that he is doing tomorrow :)

Southwestern Green Chili Cheddar Corn Bread

Ingredients

* optional

1 1/2 cups cornmeal (I used 1 1/2 cups Quick Grits- its also known as Hominy- the only difference is the texture!)
½ cup of a can of creamed corn*
1/2 cup all-purpose flour (used 1/2 cup gluten free flour*)
6 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (used 1/2 cup lowfat milk, and 1/2 cup lowfat yogurt)
1 to 1 ½ cups sharp cheddar*
1/4 cup olive oil
3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (used 1 can mild green chilies)

1/2 teaspoon allspice*
1/2 teaspoon cayenne*
1/2 teaspoon coriander*
1 small onion, chopped and sauteed until slightly browned*
2 1/2 cloves chopped fresh garlic*
dusting of paprika on the top*

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine the first six ingredients. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and yogurt. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. As I noted above- what I also did was saute' an onion until just browned, and threw that into the mix. The oil that I used to saute the onion was also reserved and combined with the original 1/4 cup of oil.

~ Make sure you stir it all thoroughly folks, you may have leftover grits/cornmeal still deep in the bowl !

Stir in jalapenos/green chilies. Pour into a greased 9-in. square baking pan.
(used my round springform... sue me :P)

2. Bake at 400 degrees F for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares or wedges. Serve warm.

...No folks, what you REALLY need to do is cook this MUCH longer than that, due to the extra wet ingredients. So I would say more like 35 minutes and just poke a toothpick in the center, it should come out clean.

Enjoy :)

P.S. I was SORELY TEMPTED to add some cooked bacon / back bacon to this - however, I did want to make this dish somewhat vegan friendly (and to make it vegan, I would say just use soy milk and skip the bacon and cheese - or use soy cheese :P) ... that and, well, I had already made those chocolate bacon cookies and didnt want to over do it :P

Footnotes:

When cutting or seeding hot peppers, make sure you use rubber or plastic gloves to protect your hands. Avoid touching your face or *cough* personal extremities :P

Updates:

~ Upon tasting, very good- though I would do only two things different-

1.) Saute' the garlic as well (left it in raw when cooking) , it was way too strong- and this is coming from a garlic lover mind you :P
...Roasted garlic would certainly be a good idea as well, I'll keep that option open :3

2.) I'd also recommend putting on a light layer of butter on the top (or maybe a butter pat or two, broken into bits over the top)... it was a good suggestion that I took in at the party :)