Healthy Veggie-Loaded Cheesy Cornbread

kristenjwerner

Jun 28

This cheese-topped, veggie-loaded tender cornbread has a base of sautéed bell peppers, corn, and onion that adds a delightful texture and flavor.

Cornbread is delicious when paired with a bowl of soup or chili. I think it is unacceptable to have soup or chili without some form of bread. The only problem is that most yeast bread takes a bit of planning/time to make. This cornbread is a scrumptious alternative when you don't have the time to make yeast bread.

I honestly get more excited about the cornbread than the soup. I say forget about making soup and eat this cornbread for dinner…it's got veggies in it!

Healthy Veggie-Loaded Cheesy Cornbread:

Prep Time: 20-30 min Cook Time: 20-25 min Servings: 10-6 (the six of us ate it all in one sitting)

Ingredients:

½ red bell pepper diced

½ yellow bell pepper diced

½ green bell pepper diced

1 medium white onion diced

½ cup fresh or frozen corn

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons butter

1 ¼ cup cornmeal

¼ cup whole wheat flour

½ cup white flour

1 cup almond flour

1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons butter, melted

2 eggs

3 tablespoons olive oil

2/3 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup yogurt

2 tablespoons milk

1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar

1 ½ cups sharp cheddar cheese divided

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large 12x12 inch cast iron skillet over medium-low heat, melt the 2 tablespoons butter. Finely dice the bell peppers and onion. Add in the bell peppers, onion, corn, and minced garlic. Cook until tender and set aside. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter and set it aside to let it cool. In a large bowl, mix the cornmeal, white flour, whole wheat flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set the dry mix aside. When the melted butter is cooled, stir in the buttermilk, yogurt, milk, olive oil, eggs, and brown sugar. Now gently mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. When the dry patches are almost gone, fold in 1 cup of grated cheese. Gently stir until all the dry patches are gone, and the cheese is evenly distributed. Be careful not to overmix the batter. Grease the sides of the cast iron skillet that the sautéed veggies are in, then spoon the batter over the veggies and spread it out evenly to cover the veggies up. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of cheese over the top of the batter. Bake for 25-30 min or until slightly golden on the edges and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 10 min, then slice in and enjoy!

Some photos of the process:

Recipe Notes:

~If you do not own a cast iron skillet just cook the veggies in a regular skillet. Transfer them to a greased 13x9 in glass baking dish the top with the cornbread batter.

~Any type of cheese can be used in place of the sharp cheddar.

~If you do not have a 12x12 in cast iron skillet just use a glass baking dish as instructed above or just use two smaller cast iron skillets and reduce the cook time.

~Whole milk buttermilk and whole milk yogurt should be used for optimal texture.