Jalapeño cornbread is the answer to a same ‘ol classic. Old cheddar and jalapeño pepper add the zip. It’s a savoury muffin delight that you can enjoy as a snack or as an accompaniment to a meal. You can find the printable recipe at the bottom of the post.
Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread
Hubs and I have a strict ‘no genetically modified’ rule in our household. So we use an organic Italian brand of cornmeal called La Grande Ruota that’s gluten free. With everything that’s going for it, it also just happens to be the best corn meal we’ve ever tasted; and believe me when I say we’ve tried a lot!
It’s not too fine, but not too course; it’s just right!
We use a whole jalapeño pepper per batch, but you can adjust the amount to your own taste. However, if you can’t tolerate spice, leave it out completely.
First, cut the jalapeño pepper into strips.
Then dice it finely. Whatever you do, don’t rub your eyes after this! Hubs is braver than me; I usually wear gloves for this step.
Cut the Cheese!
Old cheddar adds zing. But you’ll also find that the cheese helps to temper the spice level. Maybe I’m just used to these now, but I hardly notice the peppers. Maybe it’s time for us to bump it up to 2.
The secret to the cheesy cornbread is to cut it into cubes. Don’t be tempted to grate the cheese; it will disappear into the batter.
You can make this entire recipe in just an oiled cast iron skillet. That will give you cornbread that is 1 1/2″ thick.
More About the Cast Iron Skillet
By the way, when we purchase our cast iron skillet, there was no such thing as a ‘pre-seasoned’ pan. We had to season it ourselves. But even pre-seasoning doesn’t last forever. If you find that your cast iron is getting rusty or just isn’t as non-stick as it used to be, check out this article on how to season your cast iron pan. The only thing we do differently is the oil: we use grapeseed oil because it has a high smoke point and is non GMO.
The only other piece of advice you should know about cast iron is to never cook anything acidic, like tomato sauce, in it. It will eat through your beautiful new non-stick coating and rust the cast iron so you’ll have to re-season all over again!
We sometimes do a combination of 8 muffins and put the rest of the batter into the skillet. Just keep in mind that the skillet will take less time to cook (around 15 minutes).
We spray the skillet, muffin tin and scoop with avocado oil. You can use any high smoke-point oil and it doesn’t have to be sprayed on; we just like the convenience. Hubs sprays over the sink to catch any overspray.
If you split the batter up, as we do, after you portion out 8 muffins, fill the other 4 empty baking cups half way with water. That will help them cook evenly.
Bake 15 – 120 minutes in a pre-heated 400°F oven.
Let cool a bit before transferring to a cooling rack.
Skillet Jalapeno Cornbread
Cut the round into wedges.
We usually eat the cast iron cornbread with dinner and freeze the muffins for later.
The number of servings you get with the cast iron version will depend on how large you cut your pieces. It’s so good, I usually have seconds anyway!
Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins
I love the crispy edges and bottoms on the muffin version. If you’re a fan of that too, you’ll probably want to forgo cast iron and make the whole batch into muffins.
Watch the Video
Watch the video, then grab the printable recipe below.
I hope you’ll give this jalapeño cornbread recipe a try! These keep extremely well in the freezer.
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Savoury Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread - Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 2 cups yellow cornmeal
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup old cheddar cut into cubes. Don't use grated cheese.
- 1 jalapeño pepper finely diced
- 1 1/2 cups yogurt room temperature
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled
- One egg beaten, room temperature
- Avocado oil spray can
- 2 tsp Lakota brown sugar or honey optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a 12 inch cast iron skillet and set it aside.
- In a large bowl, place the cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine well. In separate bowl, place the yogurt, butter, egg and whisk to combine well. Stir in the diced Jalapeno.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Then stir in the cheese cubes. The mixture will be relatively thick. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan (s).
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until lightly golden. Note that the cast iron pan will take less time than if using the muffin pan.
- Remove to a cooling rack. Can be frozen once cool.
You had me at cornbread!! Off to pin!!
Ha ha! Thanks for pinning Kim!