tamale dressing

if you’re still casting about for an additional side to add to your thanksgiving repertoire or you just want to try a new and exciting dressing/stuffing this year, boy do i have a treat for you. if you have had thanksgiving with me in the last several years, you’ve had this dressing. a few times i’ve even used my own homemade tamales. i also make a very traditional bread and sage dressing so everyone can have what they want, but this one always runs out first.

there are a few variations of this dressing floating around out there and mine is originally from the local paper, but i can’t remember the source anymore. i have really adapted it to be my very own, however. the original and my own have diverged completely with the exception of the spirit of the dish. it’s thanksgiving’s crazy-mixed-up tex-mex cousin, who came up from the valley for the holiday. looking forward to all the family that is coming to our house for thanksgiving ~ hope yours is wonderful!

tamale dressing (makes a large casserole pan)

12 tamales of your choice (i choose traditional pork)

1-8×8 pan prepared corn bread

1 cup finely shredded white cheese (oaxacan, mozzerella, jack)

2 cups chopped fresh tomato (or 1-28 ounce can rotel tomatoes with green chiles)

2 cups chopped onion

1 poblano pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

salt and pepper to taste

preheat oven to 350 degrees. crumble tamales and corn bread into large bite-size pieces by hand into a large bowl. do not blend or process as this will result in a very dense and mushy dressing. saute tomato (drain if using canned), onion, pepper in a a few tablespoons of butter until soft (about 5 minutes). add oregano through through cumin and saute for about a minute. add salt and pepper to taste. cool briefly. add tomato mixture and cheese to tamale/cornbread mixture and toss gently-do not over mix. pour into a large greased casserole or baking pan and bake for 30 minutes until heated throughout and lightly browned on top.

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