The Fergus Falls Daily Journal

Cornbread Mexi Casserole, Rothsay style

By Allison Myhre

January 11, 2008

2 comments

I wouldn’t say that small town living affords the opportunities of say, Anthony Bourdain’s lifestyle on his Travel Channel show No Reservations. I mean really, this week I watched him eat his way through Singapore proclaiming it as one of the best (maybe the best) places to eat on the planet, and in another episode I watched him eat warthog anus with African tribal people in the Sahara.

So there are ups and downs to food wherever you go I suppose… And as for January in Minnesota, well, it’s not so bad.

Last weekend I spent Sunday cozied up on the couch with a pile of cookbooks I received for Christmas, including The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook, The Art of Simple Food, by Alice Waters, and Celebrate Rothsay! (a new release highlighting 125 years of community favorites).

The Mayo Clinic book is, of course, claiming that healthy food can be delicious. And their recipes and photos make it seem like a strong possibility. But I tossed it aside anyway.

The Alice Waters book is good, if not a bit preachy, and does highlight the fact that if you have good quality ingredients, you can make very simple and delicious recipes without much effort. Of course you should also know how to make basic sauces, etc… and yada yada yada. When I’m feeling a bit more “culinary” I’ll pick her up again.

(Really Ms. Waters, what good is a zucchini ragout with bacon and tomato on a day when we can build a snowman? You think I can find a decent tomato around here in January?)

The real star of my couch day was the Rothsay cookbook, boasting nearly 1500 recipes. I flagged at least 20 of those recipes, and while some were hotdish and jello-related, I found a lot of more sophisticated and realistic recipes for the average person living in Minnesota in January.

I can’t wait to try the hot pecan dip, the chicken with balsamic bbq sauce, or the easy skim milk scalloped potatoes. You won’t find these delicious recipes in fancy cookbooks, but you will find all the ingredients you need without too much effort, and your family and your stomach will thank you at the end of the day.

Cornbread Mexi Casserole Shirley Danielson’s recipe from the Celebrate Rothsay! cookbook

1 lb. ground beef

½ cup green pepper

1 T. sugar

1 tsp. salt

½ cup onion, diced

½ cup black olives, sliced

1 pt. tomatoes, or 15 oz. tomato sauce

16 oz. can kidney beans

1 ½ tsp. chili powder

¼ tsp. garlic powder

Brown meat. Mix all together and cook for 15 minutes. Pour mixture into baking dish.

Topping:

½ cup yellow cornmeal

½ cup flour

2 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

2/3 cup milk

1 egg

2 T. butter, melted

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (divided)

Stir together all topping ingredients (1 cup of the cheddar cheese) and drop spoonfuls on meat mixture. Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Note: I didn’t have any canned tomatoes or tomato juice, so I used homemade salsa instead. I also added a can of diced green chilies to the meat mixture.