mix, mix…stir, stir

A savory baked good is a welcome change this week.  The Tuesdays with Dorie gang is making corn muffins filled with all kinds of surprises like corn kernels, red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, and cilantro. It’s a fiesta in each muffin!

photo by David Peterman

The two requirements I have for cornbread or corn muffins is that the outside be crispy and the inside moist. More than any other food I have encountered, cornbread carries a high risk for getting stuck in the back of the throat; it can be so dry, course, and downright difficult to swallow. In addition to crispy, yet moist, a nice hint of sweet is even better.  Based on my cornbread preferences alone, you can tell I didn’t grow up in the South. These muffins are crispy, moist, and have just a touch sweet. The pleasing texture surprised me because they were baked in a standard muffin tin rather than a pre-heated cast iron pan, which I have always believed to be a requirement for a nice crispy exterior.  

The mix-ins really make them wonderfully moist and the corn kernels add a pleasing chewy texture element.  David isn’t a fan of such additions to cornbread, so I never add whole corn or peppers when making cornbread, but with muffins it is easy to portion out a few before adding the additional goodies, making us both happy.

photo by David Peterman

Dorie calls for 1 ½ teaspoons of chile powder and I decided to use one of the gorgeous Pasilla Oaxaca chiles I had on hand. They are intensely smoky and fruity with a good kick of heat. In fact, next time  a teaspoon will do just fine rather than the 1 ½ teaspoons I used in this batch. I just removed the seeds and snipped the pepper into small pieces with kitchen shears before grinding it in a spice grinder.

Pasilla Oaxaca chiles, sometimes called “little raisin chile”, are the dried chilaca chile grown around the Oaxaca region of Mexico. They aren’t quite as hot as chipotle chiles, but offer a much stronger smoked flavor.  Pasilla Oaxacas are a great way to add a nice smoky note to vegetarian soups and bean dishes in the place of bacon or ham, by just letting a whole chile infuse in the soup. They are wonderful in any dish that could benefit from a nice smoky hint and a bit of heat. I have even made wonderful Pasilla Oaxaca chocolates by infusing the chile in cream and making a ganache. These are a fantastic chile to add to your pantry stash!

Thank you to Rebecca, of Ezra Pound Cake, for picking this week’s recipe from Dorie’s book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. Rebecca always offers up an entertaining take on her cooking adventures, so check out her blog, you will find the recipe posted there as well.