Chilli corn and tomatillo pie

When we got tomatillo for the first time in the harvest I was both excited and curious. I'd heard of them before but never seen one, never mind eaten one! We tried one raw: I found it far too sour, although refreshingly citrusy. A quick internet search revealed that mostly people make salsa with tomatillo, which didn't appeal to me.

After a bit more searching I came across this recipe which reminded me of a recipe I've made for years from an ancient cook book: Vegetarian Main Meals by Kathryn Hawkins. So I combined the two and this pie was born.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

For the filling:

1 tbsp oil

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1 onion, sliced

1 red pepper, diced

1 green pepper, diced

1 tsp lazy chilli

200g sweetcorn

180g tomatillo (husked weight), chopped

1 tin kidney beans, drained and rinsed

salt & pepper

handful fresh coriander

For the topping:

250g cornmeal

2 tbsp plain flour

4 tsp baking powder

2 eggs, beaten

180ml milk

1 tbsp oil

80g mature cheddar, grated

Directions

  1. Heat the oil. Add the onion and cook over a low heat for 5 mins or so. Add the peppers, garlic and chilli and cook for a few more minutes.
  2. Add the beans, sweetcorn and tomatillo and cook for a few more minutes.
  3. Season to taste, add the fresh coriander, stir, and remove from the heat.
  4. Make the topping by mixing together the cornmeal, flour and baking powder. Beat in the milk, oil and eggs until you have a batter.
  5. Spoon the topping over the bean mixture, sprinkle with cheese, and bake at gas 7/220C for 30 mins.

Variations

  • Halve the topping quantities if you feel the filling to topping ratio isn't right for you.
  • Add a tin of tomatoes to the filling if you prefer a less dry dish.
  • Add meat (probably beef is best) to the filling if you're feeling carnivorous :-)

This recipe tastes even better made with vegetables from Community Harvest Whetstone :)

Chilli corn and tomatillo pie