These muffins are basically tamale pies baked in muffin form with a center filling. They are "brisa del mar" ("sea breeze") because they have a hint of sea flavor. Although traditional tamale pie frugally extends a meat ingredient (usually beef), this recipe can be made vegetarian or vegan. The main deviations from basic tamale pie are the ground shrimp (or seaweed flakes) in the cornmeal batter, the "frosting" of pureed lima beans, and the smokey paprika, which reminds me of barbecue. Like the zong-zi wrapped rice dumplings, these muffins are just about a complete meal in one package. Once the cornmeal solidifies, they can be handled without breaking apart, and can be put in a cupcake carrier and stowed in lunchboxes (with the salsa in a separate sauce container or in packets - like the fastfood ones - instead of garnishing the frosting).
As I was developing this recipe, it occurred to me that flavoring the cornmeal with seafood would be an interesting touch, since I live in a city with a seafood waterfront. Large chunks of fish or shrimp would have been too bold, I thought. In my food bins was an unopened bag of dried ground shrimp (shrimp powder), perfect for a scent of seafood. Shrimp powder has a slightly bitter taste to it (at least my brand does), so I don't recommend loading the cornmeal heavily with shrimp powder.
The "fiesta" frozen vegetables are a mix of carrots, broccoli, sweet peas, white beans. garbonzo beans, kidney beans, green beans and red peppers. With so many kinds of beans, I included cumin and smoked paprika in the spice mix to make the meat mixture taste more like a barbecued chili. I did try a frozen "stir-fry" mix as well (with such asian-style vegetables as water chestnuts, mung bean sprouts and snap peas), but found the asian flavors clashed with the TexMex flavors too much for my palette.
The frosting was originally supposed to be mashed potatoes, but I went with pureed lima beans when I discovered how close they were to real mashed potatoes (many of my bun and pastry fillings are based with lima bean puree). Thematically, the lima bean puree echoed the bean ingredients in the batter. The recipe makes more puree than absolutely necessary for frosting the muffins, but I like a thick layer of frosting on my tamale muffins.
For vegetarians, these muffins can be made meat-free by substituting the ground beef with crumbled veggie burgers or a prepared vegetarian textured protein (I tried the Morningstar Crumbles with great success). Instead of the shrimp powder, put in 1-1/2 to 2 teaspoons (roughly double the amount) of seaweed flakes. Seaweed flakes are available in American markets, but I made my own flakes by roughly grinding half a sheet of a sushi wrapper (sushi nori) in a spice grinder or by cutting it into confetti with a scissors. I haven't tried a vegan cheese, but there are cheddar-like vegan cheeses that melt like a dairy cheddar.
Makes 4 tamale muffins
- 130 to 190 calories per muffin (frosted with 1 tablespoon of lima bean puree)
- Oven Temperature: 250F/121C
Tamale Muffins:
- 1/2 cup browned ground beef or vegetarian crumbles
- 1/4 cup chopped green salad olives
- 1/4 cup frozen "fiesta" vegetables, thawed (see text)
- 1/8 cup chunky-style salsa
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika (see text)
- 1/8 teaspoon cumin (see text)
- 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
- 1/8 cup grated cheddar cheese or other soft cheese or vegan melting cheese (see text)
- 3/8 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1-1/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon dried ground shrimp or 2 teaspoons seaweed flakes (see text)
- 1 cup seasoned lima bean puree (see below)
- 1/2 cup dried baby lima beans
- salt and pepper to taste
1. Soak lima beans in water overnight.
2. Drain beans. Put in sauce pot and cover with water. Simmer for about an hour or until beans are tender.
3. Drain and puree beans in a mini food processor or with an immersion blender.
4. Season puree with salt and chili powder or pepper to taste.
Cookies Method:
Preheat oven or cooker to 250F/121C.
1. Mix ground beef or vegetarian crumbles, vegetables and olives in a small bowl. Gently press mixture and pour out any excess liquid.
2. Add salsa, ketchup, hot sauce, spices, salt and cheese and mix. Set aside.
3. In a medium sauce pot, mix water, cornmeal and dried ground shrimp or seaweed flakes. On medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk, cook the corn meal until it thickens into a paste and clears the bottom of the pot as it's stirred (usually less than 5 minutes).
4. Remove from heat. Reserving 1/4 cup of meat mixture (muffin filling), stir the remainder of the meat mixture into the cornmeal.
5. Grease 4 muffin molds (1/2 cup capacity). Fill each muffin mold with the cornmeal batter.
6. With a spoon, press a deep hole into the center of each muffin.
7. Put 1 tablespoon of the reserved meat mixture into the center of each muffin and press down until just below level of the mold.
8. Spread the cornmeal mixture from around the muffin to cover the fillling.
9. Optional: sprinkle the top of each muffin with grated cheese. Muffins that will be frosted with lima bean puree don't need the cheese topping, which will toughen or harden as the muffin cools.
10. Bake for 2 to 3 hours until the muffins are firm and the cheese is melted and lightly brown. Interestingly, if the muffins are refrigerated for several hours before baking, they may brown in as little as 1-1/2 hours, possibly because more water is absorbed into the cornmeal during the refrigeration. As is true of a corn pudding, the longer the muffins are baked, the more the cornmeal softens and smooths out. If baking in a cooker, place moisture absorbing paper towels under lid.
11. Remove muffins from oven and cool for at least 45 minutes. If they aren't cooled long enough, the muffins won't hold their shape when unmolded.
12. Unmold each muffin and stand upright.
13. Frost each muffin with lima bean puree. If the muffins will be served hot, reheat them in a steamer or wrap them in a wet towel and reheat in the microwave, before garnishing them with salsa in the next step.
14. Just before serving, top each muffin with a spoonful of salsa.
15. An alternative way to serve is to put the muffin in a bowl and add a serving of vegetables, salsa and lima bean puree.
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