Poblano and Goat Cheese Cornbread + Apple Cinnamon Honey Butter
7:56 PMI know, I know. That's like a million things in one food item. But hear me out on this one. When James and I lived in Washington DC, one of our favorite places to eat was a little BBQ joint called Fat Pete's. Our first time there, I ordered the poblano and goat cheese hush puppies with apple cinnamon honey butter. Typically in these types of situations, I'm pretty good at sharing food, but not with those dang hush puppies. I remember being so reluctant to let James have even one of them. I went there a few weeks later with my brother, basically just to get the hush puppies. Before even entering the restaurant, I advised him to order himself some hush puppies, and warned him that I would not be sharing any of mine. None of 'em. He was just going to have to deal with it.
That's what those hush puppies turned me into. A monster.
James and I now live on the other side of the country, and as much as I wish I had the money to fly back to Fat Pete's and partake of hush puppies whenever my heart desires, I don't.Which brings us to today's recipe.
Hush puppies are basically fried cornbread. I don't have a deep fat frier, nor do I have the bravery to keep one of those devils in my house. So we're just sticking to the basics. Peppers, cheese, batter, butter. Just your basic cornbread, with a little extra.
I was born and raised in Minnesota, therefore I'm typically afraid of peppers that are any spicier than a bell pepper. But Google promised me that these poblanos were somewhere in between a jalepeno and a bell pepper. Courage, my friends. That's all it takes.
For this cornbread, poblano peppers are roasted and then chopped up. The skins and seeds are removed because I'm pretty sure that's what you are supposed to do. I'm not sure. I was more motivated by fear than by anything else.
Blistery peppers join salty, creamy goat cheese in a slightly sweet cornbread batter. Once baked, the cornbread is slathered with sweet apple cinnamon-y honey butter. Everything makes sense.
Of course you could just use normal butter and honey. But let me say a few words about this honey butter.This honey butter is fall. Move over pumpkin spice latte. Move over crunchy leaves. Move over Pinterest quotes about boots and hoodies.
Tart apples are softened up with some sugar, and spiced up with some cinnamon. Then you add honey to the mix because you are a decent human being. Then everything is whipped into butter. Naturally. This apple cinnamon honey butter is just begging you to spread it all over every complex carbohydrate in existence. Banana bread. Toast. Bagels. Croissants. Sweet potatoes. Live your dreams. Live them.
Poblano and Goat Cheese Corn Bread
*This recipe makes enough bread for an 8x8 or 9x9inch pan, I increased this recipe by 1 1/2 to fit into the skillet
2 Poblano peppers
4 Oz Goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c butter
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
To roast the peppers:
Wash the peppers and rub lightly with olive oil. Place under broiler for 5-10 minutes on each side until skin blisters and blackens slightly. Let peppers cool. Remove skins and seeds. Finely chop. Be sure to wash your hands after. If you have really sensitive skin, you may need gloves, but I didn't have any problems.
For the bread:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Melt your butter in your pan in the preheating oven. Once butter is melted whisk in sugar, eggs, and buttermilk (I just mix these right in the pan because I'm lazy, but it can get messy, you can certainly mix everything up in a separate bowl.) Mix together cornmeal, salt, flour, baking soda and mix into liquid mixture until combined. Pour into pan. gently stir in peppers and goat cheese, making sure they are spread evenly throughout.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until top is golden brown or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out cleanly.
Apple Cinnamon Honey Butter:
1 granny smith apple, roughly peeled and loosely chopped
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tablespoons honey
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
In a saucepan, cook apple, brown sugar, and cinnamon over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is melted and apples are very soft. Set aside.
In food processor or with a hand or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, cream ingredients together. If you aren't using a hand mixer, I recommend finely dicing the apple before cooking.
Cover and keep refrigerated. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
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