I don’t plan on doing a lot of posting this week, as one of my best friends is coming to visit tomorrow. Yay! But, I did promise to share my recipe for cheddar corn spoon bread, and I figured I’d better do it before Thanksgiving. The recipe is adapted from Everyday Food – I add the jalapenos and tomato to give it some color and Texas kick. Also, the part about whipping the eggs to a soft peak  really does make a difference– don’t skip it.

Cheddar Corn Spoon Bread (serves 6)

1 tbsp. butter, plus more for baking dish
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups corn kernels
2/3 cup yellow corn meal (I use stone ground)
coarse salt (important for the soft peaks)
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup grated sharp white cheddar cheese
4 large eggs, separated
1/2 fresh jalapeno, chopped (seeds removed)
10 or so cherry tomatoes, quartered (remove some seeds/water if possible)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 2 qt. souffle dish and set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine butter, milk, corn, cornmeal, 1 tsp. salt and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring frequently until mixture is slightly thickened- about 3-4 minutes. Add tomatoes and jalapenos near end of thickening process. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Let cool about 15 minutes. Stir in egg yolks until combined.

In a clean mixing bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of coarse salt until soft peaks form. (You must use a mixer for this step, believe me, I have tried other ways!). Stir 1/3 of the whites into the cornmeal mixture until combined, then gently fold in the remaining whites with a rubber spatula. Pour into prepared dish.

Place dish in oven. Bake until browned on top but still slightly loose in the center- about 30 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

Sorry I don’t have a picture- but I will after Turkey Day. Hope you spend yours with the ones you love.