Jalapeño Bacon Cheddar Cornbread

Bacon, cheddar cheese, and jalapeños play well together. So it’s no surprise that when you add them to a basic cornbread recipe, you can easily transform a side dish into a superstar.

We used Nick Malgieri’s recipe for bacon and green onion cornbread in the Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook, added cheese, and topped it with peppers to make the jalapeño bacon cheddar cornbread pictured here. If you’re looking to add some spice to your next batch, give this a try!

Ingredients

¼ pound best-quality sliced bacon, cut into ¼" strips

1 bunch scallions trimmed and cut into ¼-inch strips

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup cornmeal

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup cheddar cheese

¾ cup buttermilk

3 large eggs

¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted

4-6 fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced in ½-inch rounds

Directions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Cook the bacon in a 9 Inch Cast Iron Skillet over medium heat until it starts to sizzle. Regulate the heat so that it cooks slowly and evenly, stirring occasionally. Once the bacon has started to color, stir in the scallions and continue to cook until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes longer.

As soon as you start cooking the bacon, combine all the dry ingredients and cheese in a medium bowl and stir well to mix. In a 2-cup measuring cup, whisk the milk and eggs together and set near the bowl.

Once the bacon is ready, add the egg mixture and melted butter to the dry ingredients and mix the batter until smooth.  

Fold in the bacon and scallion mixture.

Set the empty skillet over medium heat (it doesn’t matter if a few pieces of bacon and scallion have remained behind) and let it heat for a minute. Pour in the batter. Arrange jalapeños on the surface. Bake the cornbread until it is risen and firm, about 20 minutes.

Cool on a rack for 5 minutes and serve while still warm, cut into wedges.