Less Processed: Mexican Cornbread Casserole

A couple of years ago my father-in-law made a casserole I had never had before--Mexican Cornbread Casserole.  I was hooked at first bite!  I think I made it three times after trying it that winter.  This winter we have had it twice already (plus leftovers!), but I have made a few changes to reduce the amount of processed foods and also add in a few more whole grains.

The original casserole is made with ground beef, salsa, Velveeta, and a box of Jiffy Cornbread mixed with a can of creamed corn.  My version has a homemade cheese sauce and cornbread made with whole grain flour.

It is still high in sodium and still somewhat processed, but it tasted really great, so I am abandoning more changes for another time!  I do think I could pulse some thawed frozen corn in the food processor and mix a little milk and maybe an egg into the dry cornbread mix and replace the creamed corn, but I haven't tried it yet.  Also, there is a lot of sodium in canned salsa, so look for one with low sodium content.

Here's the recipe for Mexican Cornbread Casserole:
Ingredients:

Meat Mixture:

1 lb Ground Beef, 90% Lean

1 cup Onions

1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper

16 oz Salsa, Mild

Cheese Sauce:

2 tbsp light butter

2 tbsp Whole Wheat Flour

1 cup Skim Milk

1/2 cup Fat Free Sour Cream

1 1/2 cups 2% Milk 4 Cheese Mexican Blend

Cornbread Topping:

1/2 cup Yellow Cornmeal

2/3 cup Whole Grain Flour Mix

3 tbsp Sugar

1/4 tsp Salt

1 tbsp Baking Powder

2 cups Cream Style Sweet Corn

Directions:

Coarsely chop onions.  Heat skillet and cook ground beef with onions until beef is browned, salt and pepper to taste.  Drain off excess grease. Transfer meat to a 9X13 baking dish.  Pour can of salsa over meat.

Using same pan that ground beef was cooked in, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium low heat. Add 2 tablespoons flour and whisk until flour is absorbed into butter.  Add milk and sour cream.  Scrape any brown bits off the bottom off the pan and whisk until creamy.  Bring to a boil and stir constantly so milk does not scald.  Boil 1-2 minutes or until sauce has thickened.  Remove from heat and add shredded cheese.  Stir until cheese is melted.  Pour cheese sauce over meat and salsa.

Mix cornbread ingredients together and stir in creamed corn.  Spoon cornbread batter over casserole and carefully spread with a spatula.

Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until cornbread is cooked through.  If you use a smaller pan, cornbread will take longer to cook.  I cooked mine in a glass 9x13 baking dish and it cooked in a little over 20 minutes.

I came up with a great 1600 calorie meal plan that included this casserole and a cookie!  Enjoy!

Breakfast- 256 Calories

Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie with Flaxseed

Apple Bran Muffin

Snack- 205 Calories

Whole Grain Mini Bagel

Natural Peanut Butter

Lunch- 369 Calories

Pitas with Hummus, 

Cucumber Yogurt Sauce (originally posted as part of Veggie Gyro Post)

and Tomatoes

You get 1 1/2 of sandwiches

Snack- 195 Calories

13 Raw Almonds

Cocoa Fudge Cookie from Cooking Light

Dinner- 624 Calories

Mexican Cornbread Casserole 

Green Beans

(1 1/2 servings...cause you won't be able to stop!)

Total = 1649

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