Mexican Street Corn Skillet Bread - National Festival of Breads

     This recipe is so quick and easy I've made it twice since the NFOB last month! Not surprising that Michele Kusma of Ohio won the time-saving category with this entry. It is another bread with corn as an ingredient, thank you to the Kansas Corn Growers for their sponsorship to the contest. This bread made a wonderful side for the taco casserole that I served last night.
     Michele said she'd heard such good things about the National Festival of Breads that she made a goal of perfecting her bread skills and she certainly did. She entered 13 recipes with hope of making it to the contest. I'd like to see her others!
     This recipe uses Cotija cheese, a Mexican dry grating cheese similar to Parmesan. I couldn't find Cotija in our local store, or even where I looked in the larger stores around. A substitute is soft Feta cheese or aged Parmesan or Romano cheese. I've made it with Feta and that works well.
    Another thing to remember with these delicious moist breads is that they will mold if left out too many days. Keeping bread in the refrigerator will make it taste a bit stale, but is preferable to moldy bread! I keep these homemake breads in the refrigerator then freshen and heat them in the microwave for a very short time before serving.

Michelle's baking at the NFOB

MEXICAN STREET CORN SKILLET BREAD

Dough Ingredients:

1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

1 (¼ oz) package Red Star Quick-Rise yeast

1 cup warm water (110°-115°F)

3 cups King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 cup finely crumbled Cotja cheese, divided

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Garnish:

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro and/or parsley

½ fresh lime

Directions:

1.     Preheat a 10” cast-iron skillet over medium heat; cook corn kernels 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until kernels are lightly charred. Remove corn from skillet, let cool. Wipe skillet clean and set aside.

2.     In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle, combine yeast, warm water, flour, salt, chili powder, garlic powder, and 1½ tablespoons olive oil. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes.

3.     Stir in the corn and ½ cup cheese; mix on medium-low speed until corn kernels and cheese are evenly distributed, about 2 minutes.

4.     Brush bottom and side of skillet with 1½ tablespoons olive oil. Place the dough in the skillet and turn the dough to coat it with the oil. Evenly stretch and press the dough in the bottom of the skillet. Cover with plastic wrap, let rise about 1 hour or until slightly puffy.

5.     Preheat oven to 375°F. With your fingers, gently press dimples all over the dough, about 1” apart. Brush the top of the dough with mayonnaise. Sprinkle remaining ½ cup cheese over the top. Bake 30 minutes, or until deep golden brown. If the top browns too quickly, tent with foil.

6.     Garnish with cilantro or parsley; drizzle with lime juice. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

12 servings/1 loaf

ready to rise

Baked, ready to eat!