Description
Easy and cheesy and packed with hearty meat, cheese, beans and taco veggies, this dish is budget-friendly and a family favorite. Make the homemade cornbread topping in no time – and be happy you did – it’s MUCH better than boxed!
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon table salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup Cabot Plain Lowfat Greek Yogurt
- 1/4 cup milk
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 medium bell pepper, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 (15-ounce) can Southwestern-style pinto beans (such as Bush’s) don’t drain
- Half of a (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes (with half the juice)
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 4 ounces Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated (half of an 8-ounce package)
Instructions
Heat the oven to 400-degrees F.
For the cornbread topping, in a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, milk, oil, honey. (Do not combine the wet and dry ingredients until ready to pour on hot meat mixture.)
In a large (11 1/2-in to 12-in) cast-iron skillet, brown the beef until no longer pink over medium heat, about 5-8 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan to a paper-towel-lined plate and drain the fat (don’t wipe clean.) Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for 5-8 minutes until tender. Add the beans WITH the can juices, tomatoes, the corn, and the reserved cooked meat. Heat, stirring, until hot, about 3-5 minutes.
While the meat and beans are heating, add the wet cornbread ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir 4-5 times and then add half of the grated cheese. Continue to stir until just combined. Level out the meat mixture in the skillet with a spatula and spoon the cornbread mixture over the top. Smooth so no (or only a few) spots of meat are peeking through. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the skillet from the oven and top with the remaining cheese. Bake for 5 minutes more until the cheese is melted.
Notes
If you don’t need the cheese on top to be melty, just add all the cheese to the cornbread ingredients and bake as above, without the last 5 minutes.