Chili and Cornbread for Two

This cornbread is now officially my new favorite baking recipe for one (or two). 

It just looks soooo cute and tastes amazing and...don't even get me started on the texture.

Woo-to-the-Hoo! That little bit of grittiness that the cornmeal provides is really nice. 

Really, really nice.

And, what goes better with cornbread than chili?

Umm...nothing. That's what.

I downsized my chili recipe to make only enough for two very generous portions. 

From start to finish in under an hour for both recipes. Not too shabby for homemade chili and cornbread, right?

Chili and Cornbread for Two

Ingredients

Chili seasoning

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

pinch of cayenne pepper and seasoning salt

Chili

1 tsp oil

1/2 lb extra lean ground beef

1 stalk celery, diced

1/4 medium onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 yellow pepper, diced

2 medium carrots, diced

1 large tomato, diced

1 tsp dried chives

2 Tbsp ketchup

Chili Seasoning (entire amount in recipe above)

1/4 cup water (or more)

1 cup mixed beans, canned

Cornbread

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp dried chives

sprinkle of cayenne pepper

1 Tbsp aged cheddar cheese, shredded

1 egg white

1/4 cup milk

3 tsp oil

1 Tbsp honey

Directions

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add in the ground beef and cook, stirring often, until crumbled and browned. 

Add in celery, onions, garlic, pepper, carrots, tomato, and chives. Cook and stir until veggies start to soften, about 5 minutes. 

Stir in ketchup, Chili Seasoning, and 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil.

Turn heat to low simmer, stir in mixed beans. Let simmer for 45 mins to an hour. Add a little more water if you find it is too "dry" looking. (I ended up adding another 1/4 cup water)

Serve hot.

Directions for Cornbread: 

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a single serving cooking dish with cooking spray (or line with parchment paper) and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, salt, baking powder, chives, cayenne, and cheese.

In a separate bowl, whisk together egg white, milk, oil, and honey. 

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. Scrape into prepared dish.

Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes, until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. 

Serve warm. 

Chili and cornbread. It's like they were created just to be together.

I used Myfitness pal to work out the nutritional info:

Chili (1/2 of the recipe) - 439 calories, 49 carbs, 14 fat, 31 protein

Cornbread (1/2 of the recipe) - 230 calories, 33 carbs, 9 fat, 7 protein.

Trust me when I say this is a VERY generous portion. the photo of the chili, above, isn't even half of the recipe. 

I just wanted to add....I know adding carrots to chili seems a bit weird. You do not have to add them if you don't want to. In fact... you can add pretty much whichever veggies you want. I had planned to add zucchini but I used the last of it and forgot to buy more. 

I love the little rainbow of veggies :)

Uber healthy and uber tasty. 

Oh, yeah...and you can totally spice up the cornbread if you want as well. Add in some chopped jalapeno or more cayenne. 

 

Be sure to visit My Turn For Us for some great links!