You're a Shinin' Star, No Matter Who You Are

With my love of corn meal masa and new discovery of adding roasted salsa to flavor it instead of cheese or butter, I've been on a quest to make a tamale pie.  I love tamales but lets face it gals, they are a lot of work, time and if you make them right, they're not exactly healthy.  But there is nothing like the taste of the masa steamed and fabulous with the spicy pork meat threads all succulent inside.

This is a healthy remedy alternative to my tamale cravings.  Tamale Corn Pie. I started with roasted my salsa ingredients, cooking a lb of ground turkey meat and starting the 1/2 hour stirring process on my cornmeal.  I used course grain because I like the texture.  I blended up the hot sauce and when the masa was thick and pulling from the sides, I added the 1/2 cup of warm salsa. I seasoned the meat nice and spicy as lean ground turkey meat needs a lot of inspiration.  I also added in chopped green and red bell peppers as well as jalapeno and 1/4 cup of water to moisten.
 I then took a full cup of small white and gold corn thawed and added it to the masa and layered that in the bottom of the oiled casserole dish.
On top of that a layer of warm salsa, then a layer of meat and more corn meal on top of that.  A salsa top layer finished the dish.
I covered and put in a 350 oven for 45 minutes.  Then tried to let it cool but became too anxious to try it so I had to dig in.  Fabulous!!

Served it with my favorite side, cold chopped iceberg lettuce, onion and tomato tossed with fresh squeezed lemon and EVOO, s&p.

The next day it set very well and the presentation was better.

But any way you slice it, this is going into regular rotation.  It's hearty, earthy, light yet so comforting and satisfying. Girrrrrrrrl!

On my way home from the grocery store as I was imagining this concoction and what it would taste like, what is should taste like, I walked up on another type of dream in the way of a white truck parked in the sun with two gorgeous white dogs reveling in a paparazzi like frenzy.

I love when something unexpectedly pleasant like this happens. I wish all meals could be this fabulous!