cornbread waffles

Ugh, technology kills me at times. It really does.

As soon as I walk up to our IT guys I just apologize. I usually come bug them with a silly problem, which, thankfully, can be fixed quickly. But it feels so silly bugging them about it. Like I couldn’t get into a program last week and I went over to one of the guys asking for help. I sit back down and go to open the program and say ‘I’ve tried it open this like 4 times and it won’t and I keep getting a pop up…’ and that was when it opened up perfectly. He just shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Typical.

I had a moment at home like that, which is exactly why this post is getting posted a week later than I planned! Bummer! I was getting warnings when I was trying to download the pictures off my SD card to edit them about copying them without properties. WHAT? Well, it still seemed to work as I could download them and edit them in. But then they won’t upload to WordPress. And I was literally trying to do this as I was packing up the car last week to go to Maine. After swearing like a sailor, I shut the laptop, swore some more, and just had to blow off posting last week for #WaffleWednesday. So annoying!!!!!!!

And guess what, I open up wordpress again to mess around with the post when we get back and all the photos I tried to load in where in. Just magically appearing now. Sigh…

 

Anyway, this is the closest I get to making a 30 minute meal.

I am no Rachel Ray. I really admire her idea of 30 minute meals and how she (and her team) have created some wonderful 30 minute meals. I’ve tried plenty. There are some that I can totally do in 30 minutes and then there are others that take 35-40 minutes. Sometimes I’m just slow.

But with this dinner you I bet you can whip it up in about 30 minutes. I swear!

Start off by preheating your waffle iron. The veggies are quick to chop and then you just dump in the a pot to soften. Add the meat to brown. Between breaking it up and it browning, mix the cornbread batter together and start to make the cornbread waffles. While they are baking up continue on with the chili by smooshing the chili to a side and cooking the tomato paste for minute. Then dump in the beans, canned tomatoes, and spices to wrap it up and let it do its thing until you are done making your cornbread waffles. Done and done!

The best thing about this is how the waffle iron makes the cornbread have a nice crisp texture. It’s like how the best part of lasagna is the crunchy edge pieces. The crisp cornbread texture is right on the money!

And the second best thing is smothering that waffle with quick, delicious chili. Such a good dinner.

Chili Topped Cornbread Waffles 

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

For the Chili

• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 poblano pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• approximately 20 ounces of ground beef
• 1 heaping Tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 – 15.5 ounce can of black beans
• 1 – 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon chipotle powder
• 1 teaspoon cayenne powder
• salt and pepper

For the Cornbread Waffles

• 1 11.5 box of Southern Cornbread Mix from Krusteaz
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 Cup butter, melted

Optional Chili Toppings

• Salsa, fresh tomatoes, cilantro, shredded cheese, sour cream, jalapenos, diced avocado

Process

1. Preheat your waffle iron. Mix the ingredients for the cornbread waffles together. Begin to make the waffles, continue while making the chili. When done place on a cooling rack in a warm oven (200-ish degrees) oven.
2. In a medium sized pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced vegetables and garlic. Saute, stirring occasionally. Cook for about 3 minutes, until the vegetables are soft, and onions are lighter in color.
3. Add the ground beef. Break into small pieces while stirring.
4. When the majority of the beef had browned and it’s in small pieces, push over to 1 side. Add the tomato paste of the bottom of the pot. Cook for 1 minute to brown the tomato paste (this process helps enhance the flavor!)
5. Pour in the beans and diced tomatoes and add the spices and continue to simmer until you are done making your waffles.

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While I received product from Krusteaz for recipe development, all opinions are my own