Bacon Jalapeno Cornbread

You know who loves bacon? Our dog! Well, he loves the smell of it and sits in the kitchen desperately hoping he will get it. I see his little squish nose smelling the air frantically taking it all in. I’m sure he’s hoping that I’d use that to train him to ‘come’, ‘sit’ or ‘gimme paw’ but no way Jose!

Poor little Kempers had to endure while I made this Bacon Jalapeno Cornbread. Those poor little puppy eyes. But I didn’t crack! That bacon was for our cornbread!

And man, this cornbread is so good! It’s a very nice texture and of course the flavor is great. While I love sweet, dense cornbread this is savory and very light in density. The jalapeno gives it a nice little spicy edge. And of course anything with bacon kicks ass.

So, how did I pick cornbread for this week’s Sprint Cup Snack for this weekend’s race in Kansas? Well, Kansas is located in the bread basket and is known for their corn production. Well didn’t that just work out perfectly?

Eat ’em up!

Bacon Jalapeno Cornbread

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 cups corn meal
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 stick of butter, melted and cooled
• 2 jalapenos, minced
• 6 strips of cooked bacon, diced

Process

1. Cover the surface of the 10-inch cast iron skillet with the canola oil. 
2. Place the skillet in the oven while preheating the oven to 400 degrees.
3. Combine the corn meal, flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.
4. Combine the buttermilk, eggs, and butter together.
5. Gently mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Do not over mix.
6. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and pour the batter into the skillet. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

*I used a Scone & Cornbread Pan so I had some extra batter that I used to make 12 additional mini muffins, that I cooked for about 7 minutes. 

adapted from The Comfort Table by Katie Lee Joel

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{Sprint Cup Snacks Track Facts}

This is just the 3rd STP400 being held. When NASCAR changed up their schedule in 2011 this race was added to the schedule, in addition to the fall race at Kansas Motor Speedway. The speedway was built in 2001 to fulfill the need to have another Midwest track. Since then the economy in the area has been booming with new shopping center developments and hotels.

Track: 1.5 miles

Shape: D-Shaped Tri-Oval

Banking: 10.4-11 degree banking in the front stretch, 5 degree in the back stretch, and 17-20 degrees in the turns.

Surface: Asphalt

Capacity: 81,687 seats

Race: 267 laps for 400.5 miles

2012 winner:  Denny Hamlin

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