Easy as (tamale) pie

 

My lunch has been causing a sensation in the break room for the past two days. Every time I sit down, at handful of people circle my chair and coo, "Oooh, what is that?" I swear, it's just something you throw together: cornmeal, beans, onion, a pepper, and tomatoes. You know, those boring ingredients that populate the pantry and lurk in the crisper. But when they come together, you have some seriously filling, tummy-warming comfort food. Mmm. 

The thing I love about this dish is the sweetness. Once the peppers, onions, and tomatoes simmer together, they meld into something as mellow as baked beans or candied yams -- without so much as a teaspoon of sugar. At that point, all it needs is a dose of chili powder, a blanket of smooth cornmeal, and a few minutes to crisp up in the oven.

Sometimes the best things in life are easy, they come together quickly and almost on their own. Like magic, or fate, or...a tamale-style pie.


Easy-peasy Tamale Pie

• 1 cup course-grind corn meal
• 2 cups cooked beans (red, white, pinto) with a few spoonfulls of liquid reserved
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
  
• 1 medium green tomato, diced
• 1 small sweet pepper (red, yellow, orange) diced
  
• 1 small can of plain tomato sauce
  
• 2 Tb. butter or olive oil
  
• sea salt
• red pepper flakes
• 2 tsp. Mexican chili powder
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Heat a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium heat, and saute the onions and pepper until they're soft and almost translucent. While those veggies cook, bring four cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. 

When the water boils, add the cornmeal. Stir the cornmeal slowly and constantly, until the mixture begins to boil again. Toss in a pinch of sea salt and some red pepper flakes. The polenta should thicken within five minutes. When it does, remove the saucepan from heat and set it aside. 

Add another tablespoon of butter to the skillet and toss in the diced tomato, chili powder, and the beans. Pour the tomato sauce over the filling, reduce the burner heat, and let everything simmer for a few minutes. At this point, I usually add more water if the filling starts to look dry. 


Remove the filling from heat, then spread the polenta over the beans, leaving no gaps. Coat everything with a sprinkle of cheese, and bake the pie for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Voila!