Picadillo corn bread cobbler

I wanted an easy dinner tonight. That's nothing new, but I was putting spices away and remembered I have some packets of beef seasoning my mom gave me a while ago. She's been raving about them, but I almost never use premixed seasonings. I pulled some ground beef out of the freezer last night, so it seemed like a good idea. 

I chose the picadillo seasoning, with olives and raisins. Picadillo is a Latin American dish of seasoned ground beef and tomatoes, with other things added in. I was thinking about making a tamale pie, but then I came across this recipe on epicurious for 'spiced beef corn bread cobbler'. Lightbulbs! They went off. 

Let me tell you, this was so delicious. I added some stuff, and changed things around, and ate three bowls. I couldn't help it. It was so good. Sweet and spicy and the cornbread cobbler was so perfect, light and fluffy and cheesey. 

Also, look at this neat bowl my baby sister got me for my bridal shower. There's a whole set of them, they're so beautiful. 

Picadillo

If you can't find picadillo seasoning, you can use whatever seasoning you want. Here is a recipe for picadillo from epicurious that I might use when I don't have the seasoning. 

 

1/2 medium onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 T olive oil

1 lb ground beef 

1 packet Nueva Cocina picadillo seasoning 

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

1/2 c water

3/4 c red wine

Heat up the olive oil in a cast iron skillet, add the onion and pepper, and cook until softened. Scrape to the sides, turn the heat up a little, and break the meat up into the pan. Cook until browned. Sprinkle the seasoning on, stir, and let cook for a minute. Add the tomato sauce, water, and wine, stir, and let cook on low while you mix up the cornbread cobbler topping. 

Want to skip the cornbread cobbler? Cook 10-15 minutes until most of the liquid has reduced, and serve, over rice or however you want. 

Cornbread cobbler

Recipe adapted from epicurious. 

2/3 c cornmeal

1/3 c rice flour mix

1/2 t xanthan gum

1 1/2 t baking powder

2 t sugar

1 t paprika

1/4 t cayenne

1 t granulated garlic

1/3 c milk

1 egg

1/2 c grated cheese (cheddar or mozzarella)

Preheat the oven to 375. Mix together the dry ingredients, then add in the milk, egg and cheese. Mix just until combined, then plop by tablespoons on top of the meat mixture. Bake 20 minutes, until the top is starting to brown and a toothpick comes out clean.