Mexican vegetable and cornmeal pie

Recipe by: Brenda Houghton

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Prep: 25 mins Cook: 1 hour
Serves: 4

This satisfying dish, with its tasty cornmeal topping, makes an exciting vegetarian alternative to shepherd's pie.

Recipe provided by:

Reader's Digest | Low fat no fat cookbook

Ingredients
(See nutrition)

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

1 stick celery, chopped

1 large clove garlic, crushed

150 g (5½ oz) onions, chopped

½ green pepper, chopped

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

400 g (14 oz) canned red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

12 stoned green olives, sliced

1 tablespoon chopped jalapeño peppers

75 g (2¾ oz) canned sweetcorn, drained

400 g (14 oz) canned chopped tomatoes

1 tablespoon tomato purée

Salt and black pepper

For the topping:

125 g (4½ oz) cornmeal, or polenta

1 tablespoon plain white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 egg, beaten

100 ml (3½ fl oz) skimmed milk

25 g (1 oz) half-fat mature Cheddar cheese, grated

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Preparation method

1. Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F, gas mark 6). Heat the oil in a saucepan over a high heat. Stir in the celery, garlic, onions and green pepper, bring them to a sizzle, then cover, reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes, or until they have softened. Stir in the cayenne pepper and cook for a further 1-2 minutes.

2. Stir in the kidney beans, olives, jalapeño peppers, sweetcorn, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring the mixture to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Then spoon the mixture into a 3 litre (5 pint 5 fl oz) ovenproof serving dish.

3. To make the topping, mix together the cornmeal or polenta, flour, ½ teaspoon of salt and the baking powder, then beat in the egg and milk. The mixture should look like a thick batter; if not, add 1-2 tablespoons of milk.

4. Spoon the topping over the vegetables, sprinkle with the cheese and bake for 40 minutes, or until the topping is risen and golden brown. Leave the pie to stand for 5 minutes before serving.