Crawfish Cornbread

Prep: 20 min., Cook: 5 min., Bake: 45 min.

Yield: Makes 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  butter
• 1  small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped green bell pepper
• 2  jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced
• 1  cup  milk
• 1/2  cup  vegetable oil
• 3  large eggs
• 1  (14.75-oz.) can cream-style corn
• 1 1/2  cups  grated Cheddar cheese
• 3/4  cup  chopped green onion
• 2  cups  plain yellow cornmeal
• 1  tablespoon  baking powder
• 2  teaspoons  Cajun seasoning
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/4  teaspoon  ground red pepper
• 1  pound  frozen, peeled crawfish tails, thawed and drained

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Heat a 10- to 12-inch (1 1/2-inch deep) cast-iron skillet in oven 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Remove from heat. Stir in seeded and minced jalapeños.

3. Stir together milk, oil, and eggs in a large bowl. Stir in corn, cheese, onion mixture, and chopped green onion.

4. Stir together cornmeal and next 5 ingredients just until blended. Stir in milk mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in crawfish. Pour into hot cast-iron skillet.

5. Bake at 400° for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Note: To make cornbread in a baking dish, prepare recipe as directed, beginning with Step 2. Pour batter into a well greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Proceed with recipe as directed, increasing bake time to 50 minutes.

Shrimp Cornbread: Substitute 1 lb. unpeeled, medium-size raw shrimp (31/35 count), peeled, deveined, and coarsely chopped, for crawfish. Proceed with recipe as directed.