Chocolate Chili Cornbread Casserole & Weekend Chocolate Adventures

If you recall the previous prelude in Chocolate Confessions, I took my experimental culinary pursuits to the Brooklyn Chocolate Experiment this weekend! And what an experience it was – 24 talented amateur teams showcasing their best culinary chops, 6 impressive & intimidating big-name judges, and 1 experimental chef (that’s me!) tasting the experience of cooking for 300 for the very 1st time!

My sous chef and I were fired up for this challenge for weeks, but alas at the 11th hour, Brian was hit with a nasty cold and banned from getting anywhere near my food. But as they say, “The show must go on”, so I chopped, diced, sauteed, simmered, baked…and called in for reinforcements! My awesome baby brother, along with 3 lovely ladies, came through on my last minute request,  driving in from New Jersey to carry my dishes to Brooklyn, then working furiously behind the counter as I fed 300 hungry chocoholics and presented my creation (with a very shaky hand) to the judges.

So to cut all the suspense…dum dum DUM…I did not end up winning (insert your “awwws” here).  But to be 85% honest, win/loss does not matter I saw this mainly as a fun opportunity to push my limits with a challenge. I was actually more upset that my partner/sous chef was not there to lose (I mean “experience”) with me!  Nonetheless, I had tons of great friends who came to cheer me on, and many wonderful strangers stopping by for 2nds (and 3rds!) and telling me how much they enjoy my dish.  I think I had some executional issues with the dish, but I’m just getting warmed up here; you can be sure that I’ll be back with my newly acquired experience and pearls of wisdom!

I promise you a full recap with pics of all the delicious decadent dishes, but to tide you over I present you the recipe for my entry: “Cornfed Chocolate Chili Casserole“!!

Ingredients:

For the Chili:

2 tomatoes, diced (or 14oz can of diced tomatos) – with all the juices
1 can of pinto beans, not drained
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1-2 bell peppers, finely chopped
1/2 pkg of portabella mushrooms, sliced thin
1-2 cups of corn
6 oz of shredded cheese (cheddar, monterey jack, or pepperjack)
2 oz/half a bar of Decadent Dark Chocolate (I used a 83% cacao)
1 jalapeno, sliced
chili pepper flakes
cayenne pepper
paprika
cumin
salt & pepper to taste

For the Cornbread:

1 stick of light butter
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup agave nectar, or if you must, 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 heaping tbsp of 100% bittersweet cocoa powder

Get ready for Chocolatey Savory + Sweet

In a pan, saute the onions in a little butter + a little salt & pepper until cooked. Add the bell peppers and saute for a couple more minutes.
Transfer the onions and pepper into a pot. Add in mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, corn, jalapenos and bring to a boil.
Bring back to a simmer and slowly add in chili powder, cayenne, paprika, cumin, salt & pepper to taste. Consistency should be pretty thick.
Slowly stir in the dark chocolate until melted in.
In a separate frying pan, melt the stick of butter for the cornbread. Slowly whisk in milk, eggs, agave nectar. Remove from heat.
In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, salt, baking soda, cocoa powder. Add the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl and mix well.
In a 9X13 pan, layer in the Chili on the bottom, cheese in the middle, and pour the cornbread mixture on top.
Bake at 375 for around 30-45 minutes until cornbread is fully cooked