Serrano Pepper, Cheese, and Toasted Shallots Skillet Cornbread

This recipe started out as a typical Southern skillet cornbread recipe, until I got to the wet ingredients.  I had no buttermilk, but I had a can of Pickled Serrano Peppers and half and half.  Sounds disgusting, but people put vinegar in milk to make buttermilk all the time, so why waste all the flavorful liquid, when I can take advantage of it?


The toasted shallots, I bought at the Chinese store.  The label said fried scallions.  They are dry and crunchy and very flavorful.  They're typically used as toppings in soups, but in my case, since I had no onions, they were a wonderful replacement.

dry ingredients:
3 C cornmeal
1 1/2 C flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1 T sugar

wet ingredients:
2 eggs
1 3/4 C half and half
1 12-oz can Pickled Green Serrano Peppers, stems removed, chopped, liquid reserved
1 package shredded Cheddar and Jack cheese, reserving 1/2 C for top

1/2 C toasted shallots

1 T vegetable oil


Preheat oven to 400°F. Put 1 T vegetable oil in 10" cast iron skillet and swirl around to grease entire pan. Place pan in oven.

Sift dry ingredients and combine with wet ingredients and toasted shallots. Mix thoroughly and let sit for 10 minutes. The batter will start out thin, but will thicken as it sits ( I know. I was worried too, because I didn't have any cornmeal left to thicken the batter).

Pour batter into hot skillet and top with remaining cheese.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, turning skillet half way through (unless if you have a convection oven, then you don't have to do crap, except pull the bread out 10 minutes earlier. I need me a cool-ass oven.).

Run knife along edge of skillet. Place a plate over the skillet and flip. The cornbread should come out cleanly.