★ Issue CMSC·21–035 · Published 29 Aug 2021

Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread.

Name: Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 600 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: Southern
Ingredients: 1 cup cornmeal; 2 cups buttermilk; 1-3/4 cups all purpose flour; 1-1/2 Tablespoons baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon baking soda; 2 teaspoons Casa M Spice Co® Chain Reaction®; 1/4 cup sugar; 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed; 3 large eggs, beaten; 2 Tablespoons honey; 2 Tablespoons butter, melted; 3 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, cut into strips, diced; 16 ounces sweet corn; 8 ounces bacon, cooked crispy, crumbled; 2 Tablespoons bacon fat

Overnight buttermilk soak turns cornmeal tender while bacon and jalapeños bring heat and bite

PREP 25 min

COOK 75 min

TOTAL 10:00 hours

SERVES 12 people

HEAT hot

BLEND RATING 4.9 140 reviews · Chain Reaction®

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You'll need

Mixing bowlOvenBaking sheet9-13 inch baking dishHand mixerThermometerChef knifeCutting boardTongsOven mitts

Overnight buttermilk soak turns cornmeal tender while bacon and jalapeños bring heat and bite

Ingredients

FOR THE CORNBREAD

1 cup cornmeal
2 cups buttermilk
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1-1/2 Tablespoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons Casa M Spice Co® Chain Reaction®
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
3 large eggs, beaten
2 Tablespoons honey
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
3 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, cut into strips, diced
16 ounces sweet corn

PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER

8 ounces bacon, cooked crispy, crumbled
2 Tablespoons bacon fat

Method

01

Soak cornmeal in buttermilk overnight
10h m

Let stand at room temperature for 8-12 hours.
02

Preheat oven to 400°F
15 min

Get that oven hot and let it sit for the full 15 minutes — you need the cast iron screaming so the bottom crust sets up golden and crispy, not gummy.
03

Bake bacon until crisp
30 min

Monitor closely, 20-45 minutes depending on thickness.
04

Drain bacon and reduce oven to 350°F
5 min

Crumble bacon and reserve fat for greasing pans.
05

Mix dry ingredients in first bowl
3 min

Flour, baking powder, baking soda, seasoning, and sugars.
06

Beat eggs and mix with honey-butter
4 min

Use two separate bowls then combine.
07

Combine wet ingredients with soaked cornmeal
3 min

Stir until the wet ingredients are fully incorporated into the cornmeal and you don't see any dry pockets, but don't overmix or you'll toughen the crumb.
08

Mix cornmeal mixture into dry ingredients
4 min

Mix slowly to thick pancake batter consistency.
09

Fold in corn and diced jalapeno
2 min

Fold gently by hand until the corn and jalapeño are just distributed — a few streaks of unmixed batter are fine, overworking it kills the tender texture you're after.
10

Heat baking dish with bacon fat
10 min

Place greased dish in 350°F oven to preheat.
11

Pour batter and top with bacon
5 min

Carefully remove hot dish, add batter, press bacon on top.
12

Bake cornbread at 350°F
37 min

30-45 minutes until golden brown and 195°F internal.
13

Let cornbread cool before cutting
15 min

Let it rest on the counter or a rack so the residual heat finishes the cooking and the crumb sets up properly; cutting it hot will just tear and crumble on you.

From Mike's Notebook

Overnight cornmeal soak hydrates the meal so it won't taste gritty or dry in the finished bread.

Reserve bacon fat for greasing — it carries more flavor than butter and crisps the bottom crust.

Fold jalapeños last so heat stays fresh and doesn't bleed into the batter during mixing.

Nutrition

235 Calories / serving

7 gProtein

8 gTotal Fat

3 gSat. Fat

33 gCarbs

1 gFiber

7 gSugars

285 mgSodium

Estimated · 1 serving · calculated from the ingredient list, not lab-tested.

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