Whole Wheat Mesquite Cornbread

Tonya and I are going to be taking a break from teaching classes this month (with the exception of one on 3/18), so we can spend some much needed time on a new website/blog.  While this one has served it's purpose, we have grand ideas for a really great and informative website and can't wait to unveil it.  I will continue posting new content on this one, mainly recipes, so we can build that part of our website up.  Hope you enjoy them!

I have wanted to experiment with mesquite flour since the first time I made Heidi Swanson's Mesquite Chocolate Chip Cookies from Super Natural Cooking.  Those are the cookies we made last week and I featured the recipe in my last post.  To quote myself, here is a little information about mesquite flour:

Mesquite flour - This is a fun ingredient. Mesquite flour (aka "mesquite meal") is simply pods from a mesquite tree finely ground into powder. Indigenous to desert regions, mesquite trees can be found from central Texas to Southeast California. Typically we think about mesquite flavoring when grilling meats. The soft, smoky aroma of mesquite flour, though, pairs perfectly with chocolate. The health benefits are incredible, too. It's full of fiber, protein, nutrients, and essential minerals, such as, magnesium, iron, zinc, and potassium. Historically, mesquite was an integral part of Native American's diet. It is very low on the glycemic index and actually promotes balanced blood sugar. Add a spoonful to oatmeal or smoothies and you will feel fuller longer. Cross my heart. I like to purchase mine online from Barry Farms. One pound is $6.09 or you can purchase 5 pounds and receive a discount. If you don't think you'll use that much, go in with a few friends and split it up. FYI, Barry Farms has a recipe for a Mesquite Yellow Cake that I just saw and will be making very soon!

I can't reiterate enough how good mesquite flour is.  So different and unexpected.  Many people think the taste resembles cocoa and I can see that.  Not sweetened cocoa, though.  And it has a warm, almost cinnamon-y flavor, too, but it's not overly spicy.  I hesitate calling it sweet, because I just compared it to cocoa and cinnamon. It really is more of a smoky flavor, but it does have a slighty sweet element to it,too.  Are you intrigued?  I haven't made the yellow cake from Barry Farm's website that I promised I would make last week, but instead I made mesquite cornbread to go with some black bean and quinoa soup. 

I modified my usual whole wheat cornbread recipe (modified from Barefoot Contessa's recipe), to replace 25% of the whole wheat flour with mesquite flour.  That's about the right proportion.  Any more than 25% and the flavor becomes a tad strong.  The result was the best cornbread I have ever had.  I didn't think the original recipe could be topped, but I was wrong.  My family agreed, too.  My youngest son, who will turn 2 in April, has been gobbling it up all week and asking for more "cake".  It is extremely moist and a little on the sweet side, which is interesting since there is only 1/4 cup of honey for a huge amount of cornbread.  I think that's a good thing, though!  It was great with the soup, even better with an over easy egg and Chile de Arbol Sauce (also from Super Natural Cooking), exceptionally good with almond butter and honey, and if I had some fresh or frozen raspberries, I suspect making some type of raspberry sauce to drizzle it over it would make a wonderful dessert.  Next up may be some mesquite banana pancakes with pure maple syrup or maybe some type of mesquite scone with chocolate chips or raspberries. 

Whole Wheat Mesquite Cornbread

This makes a lot of cornbread, but it freezes well so don't be afraid.  You may be able to cut the recipe in half and bake it in an 8x8 pan.  Just adjust the baking time.  If you don't have mesquite flour, just use all whole wheat.  You'll end up with something close to the original version of the recipe.  Whole spelt flour would work fine in place of the wheat if you want to go that route.

2 1/4 cup freshly ground wheat (or whole wheat pastry flour)

3/4 cup mesquite flour

1 cup coarsely ground cornmeal

2 tablespoons aluminum free baking powder

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 cups 1% milk

3 extra large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup coconut oil, slightly melted

1/4 cup raw honey

1/2 cup freshly grated manchego cheese, optional

Combine flours, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt.  In a separate bowl, combine milk, eggs, coconut oil, and honey.  Stir the wet ingredients into the dry and stir only until everything is combined.  Do not overmix.  Stir in the cheese, if using.  Allow the mixture to sit for 20 minutes at room temperature.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9x13 glass pan.  Pour the batter into the pan and bake 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool slightly and serve with honey.