Similar to a tamale pie, our dinner tonight, Mexicali Hamburger Casserole with Fresh Tomato Toss, takes a slight turn and uses corn kernels instead of beans. The original recipe has you cook up ground beef and add Mexican-style diced tomatoes, however we did things a bit different. When our lean ground sirloin had browned, we seasoned the meat with a couple cloves of fresh garlic and tossed in some cumin to give us a smoky depth. As soon as we could smell that sweet pungent aroma from the garlic, we stirred in a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes with green chilies for a bit of heat and a handful of thawed corn kernels (there was some fresh corn for sale in the market today, but it still looked a little sad after its long trip from Florida!). Once warmed through, the beefy mixture was scooped into a casserole dish, scattered with a shredded blend of Mexican cheeses and followed with a basic homemade cornbread batter spread over the top. For a little color contrast (and flavor!), the top of the batter also gets a sprinkling of the cheese blend before a trip into the oven.
It only needs to bake long enough to cook the cornbread topping - it should spring back if you lightly touch it in the center. Underneath the moist golden cornbread topping, the flavors melded together well and the fire-roasted tomatoes ensured the warm meat mixture stayed juicy, without being runny. To add a fresh burst to this homey casserole, a quick toss of halved grape tomatoes, a few corn kernels and bright chopped cilantro is combined and spooned on top of each piece to serve. If you are keen on olives, the fresh tomato toss on top would benefit from a few halved pieces for an added salty note.
Geez Joe, you can even make hamburger look scrumptious!
ReplyDeleteWe tried some out-of-state corn the other day and it just wasn't the same as stuff picked the same day here. There are a few things I have a rule about buying out of season and corn is one of them (the others are peaches and melon).
Ah, perfect timing! I was sitting here searching for a way to use up some ground beef and turkey in my freezer. This will be a perfect use!
ReplyDeleteBack to add, I made this tonight as written except that I added more cumin and some ground ancho chile pepper and it was really yummy. Thanks for posting!
ReplyDeleteTracy - Thanks! I zeroed in on the corn when I saw it at the market, but even at the price it sadly didn't look worth it.
ReplyDeleteRobyn - Woo! I'm glad you gave it a whirl... I'm glad I went with the spice additions rather than using the Mexican-style tomatoes.
Oh man, Mexican ANYTHING count me in. This just reasserts my belief that Mexican cuisine is nothing more than remolding the same ingredients into different forms, but that doesn't make it any less delicious! This sounds scrumptious!
ReplyDeleteI tried this tonight, and it was delicious! Easy enough to include in the "every day recipe" category and yummy enough to look forward to eating again. Can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Thanks for sharing this!
ReplyDeleteNick - I like the way you look at it!
ReplyDeleteKelly - Fantastic! I had a portion that I froze for lunch today and it reheated well too.