A really satisfying, warm, cheesy, chicken-y dinner! The ingredient list may look long, but the cornbread comes together quickly and then I was able to just about get the sauce done while the cornbread cooked, and the chicken bit down while the sauce cooked, so it felt like it all went speedily enough. My pro-tip as far as the chicken goes is, get a whole bunch of chicken breasts, throw them plain into a crockpot for 3 hours on high/6 on low, shred all the meat, and put 1-2 breasts worth into tupperwares and into the freezer for this and SO MANY other meals when it’s handy to just pull out the chicken all ready to go.

Ingredients:

Cornbread:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup finely ground cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup canned corn (if you have the energy to grill your own corn on the cob, go that way, but it’s not for me)
• 4 ounces freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese

Enchilada sauce:

Chicken layer:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Start making the cornmeal by whisking together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the butter, milk, and egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until just combined.

I used our Jimmy Red cornmeal from work, hence the color.

Fold in the corn and cheese, then pour into a 10 inch cast iron skillet.

Bake 15-18 minutes, or until just set. (I only own 9 and 12 inch skillets and went with the bigger one to avoid the risk of the ingredients overflowing a smaller pan – if you have to do the same, just check your cornbread at or before the shortest end of the timeframe to avoid burning.)

The corn kernels stick out quite dramatically with this cornmeal!

While the cornbread bakes, heat the olive oil a large saucepan over medium heat for the enchilada sauce. Add the flour and stir until golden brown, around 2 minutes.

Add all the remaining ingredients for the sauce and stir together, then bring to a simmer.

Reduce the heat to low and cook at least 5 more minutes, or until the cornbread is ready.

While the sauce cooks, stir together the chicken, green chiles, the remaining corn, and 2 ounces of the cheese.

When the sauce and cornbread are ready, poke holes all over the cornbread and drizzle 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce on/into the cornbread.

Stir another cup of the sauce into the chicken mixture.

Spread the chicken mixture over the cornbread.

Pour all the remaining sauce on top, then sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Bake 25-30 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Remove from the oven and top with green onions and cilantro, and serve with lime wedges for sprinkling.

Tastes better than it looks! 😉 And if you refrigerate leftovers, those will hold their shape better than the stuff straight out of the oven.

Chicken Tamale Pie

From How Sweet Eats.

Cornbread:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup finely ground cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup canned corn
  
• 4 ounces freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese

Enchilada sauce:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 15 ounces tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Chicken layer:

• 1 1/2 cups cooked shredded chicken
• 1/3 cup canned corn
• 1 4-ounce can diced green chiles
• 6 ounces freshly grated white cheddar cheese
• sliced green onions for topping
• fresh cilantro for topping
  
• lime wedges for spritzing
  

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Start making the cornmeal by whisking together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the butter, milk, and egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until just combined. Fold in the corn and cheese, then pour into a 10 inch cast iron skillet. Bake 15-18 minutes, or until just set.

While the cornbread bakes, heat the olive oil a large saucepan over medium heat for the enchilada sauce. Add the flour and stir until golden brown, around 2 minutes. Add all the remaining ingredients for the sauce and stir together, then bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and cook at least 5 more minutes, or until the cornbread is ready.

While the sauce cooks, stir together the chicken, green chiles, the remaining corn, and 2 ounces of the cheese.

When the sauce and cornbread are ready, poke holes all over the cornbread and drizzle 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce on/into the cornbread. Stir another cup of the sauce into the chicken mixture. Spread the chicken mixture over the cornbread, then pour any remaining sauce on top. Top with the remaining cheese and bake 25-30 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Remove from the oven and top with green onions and cilantro, and serve with lime wedges for sprinkling.