In the mid-eighties, I taught at Trinidad State Junior College, where I learned that the names Carson, Bowman and Simpson belonged to Hispanic students. I recollect one beginning student hanging back at the end of class, to ask “Mr. McCurry, did you notice that we were the only white people in this class?” I hadn’t noticed – I’ve known my students as individuals rather than by race. Anyway, this recipe comes from Trinidad, Colorado – the notes say it was from Mary DeKleva, and I can’t say if it’s cultural appropriation of not.
1 cube melted oleo
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup white flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
2 tbsp sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 can hot diced green chili
1 cup american cheese grated and melted
Mix ingredients together. Bake in 350 degree oven in a 9 x 9 pan, for forty minutes.
A suggestion for lightweights might be to start with a can of mild diced green chili – southern Colorado and northern New Mexico have a tendency for some downright hot peppers in the food. I learned to enjoy it, but I was never sure the delicacies weren’t a test my students gave me. “Try this, Mr. McCurry – my grandmother made it.”
Trego's Mountain Ear 