Corny Cornbread

E wanted cornbread with his taco salad the other night so I told him that I'd make some. While he was at the gym I looked all over for the Jiffy cornbread mix but realized I was out. Ahh! I've never made cornbread from scratch before! I found a recipe that sounded good and decided to change it up a bit. It turned out so good!

Corny Cornbread

1 1/2 cups cornmeal
2 1/2 cups milk (I used 1%)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 can whole kernel corn, drained (or 1-2 cups fresh corn---I used a mix of both)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine corn meal and milk; let stand for 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Mix in the cornmeal mixture, eggs, and oil until smooth. Mix in the corn. Pour batter into prepared pan/s. I used two greased cast iron skillets. One large and one small. You could probably use a greased 13" x 9" pan or cornbread molds.

3. Bake for 25 - 35 minutes (depending on which pan you use. It only took my two skillets approx. 25 mins), or until knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

E loved it! I think it may have been a little more golden if I had poured some melted butter on top before baking; not quite sure. We've been eating the leftovers every day since I made it. I'm seriously thanking about heating some up for breakfast and slathering it with butter and maple syrup. It's THAT good!

Enjoy!

Update 8/14/09: I warmed a piece of the cornbread up, slathered it with butter, put a hot fried egg on top, and poured some real maple syrup over it all. YUM! Oh, I was in heaven. When E got home, I told him what I ate and he gagged! He thinks eggs and syrup are disgusting. I so disagree. It's so, so yummy!

Sesame-Tofu Stir-Fry

I made this for dinner last night and boy was it good. Yes, I did put shrimp in it only because E wanted me to. We had it a couple of weeks ago without the shrimp and he loved it, but this time he wanted something meaty. That, and he's afraid of getting too much soy.

Sesame-Tofu Stir-Fry
adapted from Fitness Magazine

1 12-oz package extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Cornstarch
1/4 cup finely chopped unsalted peanuts
1 Tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 Tbsp cooking oil
1 16-oz bag frozen stir-fry vegetables*
2/3 cup bottled stir-fry sauce
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 cups hot cooked brown rice

1. Lightly coat tofu with cornstarch. In a bowl, combine 1 Tbsp of peanuts, the sesame seeds, ginger, and red pepper. Add tofu; toss gently.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. Add tofu mixture to skillet. Cook briefly, stirring gently, until sesame seeds are toasted and tofu begins to brown.

3. Remove tofu. Add vegetables to skillet; cook and stir until heated through. Add stir-fry sauce; cook and stir gently until mixture is bubbly. Stir in tofu; heat through. Sprinkle with remaining peanuts and the scallions. Serve over rice.

*The original recipe says to thaw vegetables. I didn't. I put mine in the wok frozen and cooked until they were thawed and heated through.

**I cooked the shrimp in the wok before I cooked the tofu.