Mini Cornbread Bites

These mini cornbread bites are the perfect accompaniment to chili, as an appetizer alone or as the "bread" for a mini sandwich. The plain cornbread bites are delicious, moist and just a touch sweet.  You can also add some tasty additions to make them a bit more complex. You can toss a few into your kid's lunches or eat them at breakfast with eggs- very versatile!

        Plain                               Jalapeno Cheddar                         Bacon Onion Cheese 

Mini Cornbread Bites
recipe from Martha Stewart

For the batter:
1 cup flour
1 cup medium grind yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar + 2 tablespoons
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Additions:
Jalapeno Cheddar
3/4 teaspoon finely chopped jalapeno chile
1/4 cup grated white cheddar cheese

Bacon Onion Cheese
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
2 slices cooked bacon, chopped
1/4 cup grated yellow cheddar


Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a  24 mini muffin tin with cooking spray.  
Whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl.
Combine buttermilk, egg and oil. Stir into flour mixture until combined. Divide batter into 3 batches (1 cup each) and stir a flavor combination into two of the batches.
Fill muffin tim three-quarters full with 1 batch of batter. Bake until tops are gold and toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 12 minutes. Put pan in wire rack for 5 minutes and then turn out muffins from tin. Enjoy!

1. 
   

Polenta Breakfast Bake

I love having my kids home for the holiday break and with our long leisurely mornings, it's fun to throw together an easy breakfast bake that we can nibble on all day long. This dish is gluten free and  can be made and cooked in under an hour. Try it with your family!

A few of the simple ingredients:

 Polenta squares, bacon, eggs and cheese ready to bake

Polenta Breakfast Bake
2 tubes precooked polenta
8 slices cooked bacon, diced (I use Kirkland precooked bacon)
8 eggs
3/4 cup milk (I used 1%)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup finely grated Gruyere cheese
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
chopped basil for garnish, if desired

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
Cut polenta into cubes and place in bottom of dish. Sprinkle diced bacon and gruyere on top of polenta. Whisk eggs, milk, Dijon, salt and pepper in bowl. Pour over polenta, bacon and Gruyere cheese and top with Parmesan.  Bake for 35 minutes or until eggs are set and browned a bit. Enjoy!

Roasted Shrimp and Broccoli on a bed of Creamy Polenta

This dish will be a huge hit for your family (of course, if they enjoy shrimp and broccoli) because not only is it easy and quick to prepare but it is also amazingly delicious! Roast your shrimp as Ina does, then roast your broccoli in the same pan (after a quick swipe with a paper towel to clean it) while you whip up some very tasty polenta. Yummy dinner is ready for everyone to enjoy!

 Roasted Shrimp and Broccoli with Creamy Polenta

2 pounds uncooked shrimp (21-25 count), skin and tails removed
2 - 3  heads broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
olive oil
kosher salt and pepper

How to Roast Shrimp:
Preheat oven to 400° Place shrimp on baking sheet and toss with 1-2T olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 8 minutes.

How to Roast Broccoli:  go here

Creamy Polenta
1 cup polenta (or yellow cornmeal)
4 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup freshly shredded Parmesan

Bring water to boil in medium saucepan. Add salt and whisk in polenta/corn meal. Lower heat to simmer and cook polenta, whisking often for 10-15 minutes to prevent it from sticking on the bottom of the pot, until thick. Add butter and cheese and more salt/pepper to taste.