SKINNY CORNBREAD

‘I want to feel great. I want to look good. But I draw the line at giving up cornbread. Fortunately, I don’t like it real thick. I like when the edges sort of crunch in your mouth and there’s a little bit of corn and jalapeño in there’

GH TIP Polenta is a type of ground cornmeal that is readily available in the UK.

Hands-on time 15min. Cooking time about 20min. Serves 8

◆ Extra virgin olive oil cooking spray

◆ 4tbsp diced onion

◆ 90g (3¼oz) fresh or thawed frozen

sweetcorn

◆ 2tbsp deseeded and finely diced

jalapeño chillies

◆ 60g (2½oz) plain flour

◆ 2tsp sugar

◆ 2tsp baking powder

◆ ¼tsp bicarbonate of soda

◆ ½tsp fine sea salt

◆ 170g (6oz) stone-ground yellow

cornmeal

◆ 175ml (6fl oz) buttermilk

◆ 1 large egg, beaten

◆ 2tbsp grapeseed oil 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. Coat a small non-stick frying pan with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add the onion, corn, and jalapeños and cook until the corn is slightly charred, about 5 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl and set aside to cool to room temperature. 2 Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a medium bowl. Add the cornmeal and whisk to blend the ingredients. 3 In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, and oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Fold in the corn mixture. 4 Coat a 25cm (10in) cast-iron frying pan with cooking spray and pour the cornbread mixture into the pan. Level and smooth the top with a metal spatula. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly golden and the top centre is just firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and set the pan on to a cooling rack or trivet. Cool slightly, then slice and serve while still warm. The cornbread will keep, wrapped in clingfilm, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 152cals per serving (5 Weight Watchers smart-points)