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
- 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.
- Add the beans, sweetcorn and tomatillo and cook for a few more minutes.
- Season to taste, add the fresh coriander, stir, and remove from the heat.
- Make the topping by mixing together the cornmeal, flour and baking powder. Beat in the milk, oil and eggs until you have a batter.
- 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 :)