Mini Bean and Corn Tamale Pies

When it comes to dinner, Mexican food is my big weakness. I don’t go out to eat too much anymore, especially compared to five plus years ago when Brandon and I dined out more days than we ate at home, but I can’t give up my Mexican food. I go to my favorite Mexican restaurant at least every other week, sometimes more often. Whenever we move to a new town, finding a Mexican restaurant with a decent chimichanga and good queso blanco is my number one priority. And there have been some places (*cough* Jacksonville) where that meant trying out pretty much every Mexican restaurant in town.

I know I shouldn’t eat at the Mexican restaurant so much, though. It’s probably one of unhealthiest meals you can have. So whenever I see a Mexican-ish recipe in one of my many low fat/light cookbooks I always try it in the hopes of finding something satisfying that’s not totally unhealthy. Most of the time I’m disappointed. I got this recipe from Martha Stewart’s new Light cookbook and I was expecting it to be disappointing up front. Not only is it low fat, but it doesn’t even have meat in it. I gave it a chance anyway, mostly because of how easy it was, and I’m happy to say this recipe totally surprised me.

These are called “pies” because there is a layer of polenta at the bottom that forms a soft crust. I’d never had polenta before, but it’s basically just cornmeal and it acts as a nice base for the filling which is a mixture of cooked pinto and black beans, tomatoes and onions. I added corn to the recipe because you really can’t go wrong with more vegetables. (Plus it adds some nice color to the brownish filling.) Everything is topped with spicy pepper Jack cheese and baked until bubbly and melt-y. Basically, it’s comfort food without any of that annoying guilt!

I’ve made this recipe 3 or 4 times now. The last two times were in the span of a few weeks because it’s just so easy to whip up and it seems to taste better and better the more I make it. I know I’ve found a keeper when I make something that doesn’t have meat in it and Brandon doesn’t complain at all. In fact, he likes this dish just as much as I do. I especially know I’ve found a keeper when I’m craving it instead of a chimichanga. I’ll never completely give up going to my favorite Mexican restaurant, but this recipe makes it okay to skip a couple of weeks.

Get the recipe for Mini Bean and Corn Tamale Pies »