An Early Present on the Plate
Merry Christmas, Hanukah and Kwanzaa, dear readers. To thank you for reading this column, regardless of whether you are a dedicated weekly reader or a this is your first time, I have a very special recipe for you this week. I will let you open early and continue to use it all year round. I know you're excited, so here you go:
Every family has their own, unique holiday traditions. These traditions have developed over time, many laden with symbolism, tinged with a splash of religion, and topped with a good helping of culture. Christmas Eve is, in many ways, more varied in tradition than the actual day. Some families gather to open all their presents the night before Christmas, waiting only for Santa to fill their stockings in the morning. Some people are allowed just one gift on the Eve of giving, a little taste to arouse excitement for the main event the next day. And so on.
These traditional variations extend to food. When it comes to the Christmas Eve meal, Italians are renowned for a feast of seven fish, a heavily symbolic meatless dinner on the day before Jesus' birth. In some cultures, like in the case of the Polish 12-course meal, all the heavy eating and drinking is completed on Christmas Eve with little to nothing done on Christmas Day.
A tradition that has had its place on my table, a meal that is probably traditional only to my family, is that of The Christmas Eve Tamale Supper. Yes, tamales. I like to think the whole dinner has a deeper meaning that ties into the theme of the holiday. Those little steaming corn husk bundles piled high in a bowl draw us together around the table the way we will gather around the tree the next morning. The act of untying the stubborn knot that holds together a carefully folded package of corn husk is like practice for the next mornings' endeavor. Once past the artful wrapping, an interior of moist cornmeal encasing a filling of fragrant meat, cheese, and chili is never disappointing and is always worth the wait.
In reality, I doubt that such a deeply meaningful interpretation of our annual tamale dinner was ever envisioned by my mother when she began purchasing Christmas tamales when I was a young child. Growing up in Southern California, our family was lucky to have a family friend of American Indian descent for whom the making of tamales was a year-round family event. In this too, I can derive a deeper symbolism. Making tamales is a laborious process best accomplished with something like an assembly line of family and friends who spend all day working together to fill, wrap, and tie these tasty packaged dinners (Are we seeing a Christmas parallel yet?).
Okay, let me be honest. I can try to divine a deeper meaning from Christmas Eve Tamale Supper, but really, I think the tamale idea started out of convenience. My mother probably had been shopping and decorating and cooking for weeks in preparation for creating a celebratory atmosphere of good cheer for her children and husband. So she decided to out-source dinner. Can you blame her? On Christmas Eve we are trying to get to church, finish wrapping, finish baking, look festive and in general be jolly.
So from my home to yours, your early Christmas present: If you aren't fortunate enough to have a tamale-making friend, have no fear. I have created for you a one pan tamale pie. Tamale flavors of chili, meat, and cheese are all topped with a cornbread crust. Although no unwrapping is involved, slicing through the golden topping to discover the layers of deliciousness below is almost as satisfying and unlike a 12-course ceremonial meal, this can be enjoyed all year long.
Happy Holidays and Happier Eating!
Serves/Makes: 6
- 1 1/2 pound carrots, peeled, sliced in 1 to 2-inch pieces
- water
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 1/2 tablespoon cold butter, cut in bits
- salt and pepper, to taste
Place the sliced carrots in a skillet large enough to hold them in a single layer. Add 1/2-inch of water (or enough to only cover the carrots halfway).
Drizzle the carrots with the honey. Dot with the butter and season with salt and pepper.
Cover the skillet loosely and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 4 minutes.
Remove the cover from the skillet and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring frequently, until the carrots are fork-tender, the liquid has mostly evaporated, and the carrots are glazed.
Serve the honeyed carrots immediately.
Made with ground coriander, pinto beans, tomato sauce, salt and pepper, cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, egg
Serves/Makes: 8
- 1/2 medium onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon canned green chilies or pickled jalapenos (more if desired)
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 can (15 ounce size) pinto beans
- 1 can (15 ounce size) tomato sauce
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup cornmeal, coarse ground
- 1 cup flour
- 1 1/2 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1/4 pound Cheddar cheese
- 1/3 cup salsa
- 1 canned chipotle pepper (substitute pepper sauce if chili is unavailable)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Preheat large ovenproof skillet over medium high heat.
Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic. Heat oil in the skillet, add the onions and saute for 3 minutes to soften. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute more.
Add the ground beef, chili and spices to the skillet. Stir frequently to mix ingredients, breaking up beef as it browns. Continue for about five minutes or until beef is mostly broken up and mostly browned with some pink still visible.
Add the beans and half of the tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium low. Allow to cook 5 minutes longer while you prepare the cornbread.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
In a large bowl, whisk egg to scramble then whisk in milk followed by melted butter. Add the dry ingredients all at once, whisking just until all ingredients are combined. It may be a little lumpy still. Remove skillet from heat. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and more pepper if necessary.
Grate cheddar and distribute evenly over meat and bean mixture. Pour cornbread batter over cheese layer and, using a spatula, spread to form an even, thin layer (Note: If you do not have and oven-proof skillet, the meat mixture can be transferred to a 13 x 9-inch baking pan or a large casserole and then you can proceed with the layering of ingredients as listed above).
Bake for 15 minutes until top is set and has started to lightly brown. Remove from oven and let rest for a few minutes.
Cut into equal portions and serve drizzled with chipotle sauce.
For Chipotle Sauce: While pie is cooking, make sauce by combining remaining tomato sauce, salsa, and chipotle in blender. Adjust seasoning with salt.
Bring to a simmer in a small saucepan to serve warm with the pie.
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2 comments
always used brown sugar...with honey they were even better...thanks
Comment posted by marilyn
I was amused and also very happy to see that you had this tradition going. I have been doing this every year till my wife of 18 years was taken by cancer. But I do the traditional thing of making these Tamales for the X-Mas meal on that eve before. I share that with her in a loving thought plus, I have the chance of having a few friends over to see these Tamales as a meal. They dont like to wait patiently because of the aroma's that come out of the kitchen. I was looking for something else that could tie them in for the side that can fill them with smiles. Your 'One Pan Tamale' was really a treat for me! I experimented as I called the neighbor and his wife over to try it. I cant believe they ate the whole thing! So, this time, I will make 3 so I can have at least some left over to sit and eat with a loving thought to share with one gone but still in me. Thank you so much for a new tradition added to the X-Mas eve meal. Always with a smile.. mr phil
Comment posted by mr phil
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