This Tamale Pie recipe is a vintage, tasty, recipe that is not the prettiest food you’ve ever eaten.

The other night for dinner I wanted something different. Lots of times I want a recipe that uses ground beef, but not one that has rice or pasta in it. And sometimes those recipes are hard to come by. I was searching high and low because I just didn’t want to make tacos again. I came across a vintage recipe (which by the way I love vintage recipes) for tamale pie.

I cooked up this recipe wondering if it was going to be good. It was different than any tamale pie I had seen before. The recipe had come with no picture. And I found that this tamale pie was the ugliest tamale pie you ever did see. I was fully expecting to have to run to the nearest drive through after the first bite of dinner. I was pleasantly surprised that the ugliest tamale pie you ever did see was actually really good. The Hardworking Husband even went back for seconds. It’s a recipe I’m going to have to throw in the mix of recipes we eat again and again.

This recipe uses the diced tomatoes that I showed you how to can earlier this week.

Yield: 6 servings

Tamale Pie

Name: Tamale Pie
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1/2 large onion, diced; 1 lb ground beef; 1 clove garlic, minced; 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes, 1 pint jar; 1 15 oz can cream corn; 1 2.5 oz can sliced olives, (do not drain); 1/2 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp pepper; 1 tsp chili pepper, less or more to taste; 1 cup corn meal; 2 eggs beaten; 1/2 cup cheese, shredded (optional)

This Tamale Pie recipe is a vintage recipe. What it lacks in looks, it makes up for in flavor!

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

1/2 large onion, diced
1 lb ground beef
1 clove garlic, minced
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes, 1 pint jar
1 15 oz can cream corn
1 2.5 oz can sliced olives, (do not drain)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp chili pepper, less or more to taste
1 cup corn meal
2 eggs beaten
1/2 cup cheese, shredded (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a casserole dish with oil and set aside.
Brown ground beef with diced onion in a large skillet Add garlic cook for 30 second.
Add tomatoes, cream corn, and olives. Do not drain any of the cans. Cook for a couple minutes. Add seasonings, cook for a couple more minutes.
Fold in corn meal.
In a separate bowl, beat eggs. Slowly add 1/2 cup of meat mixture to eggs while stiring constantly to bring eggs up to temperature so you don't scramble them. Add egg mixture back to pan. Mix together thoroughly.
Pour mixture into casserole dish and bake for 40 minutes.
If using cheese, sprinkle over top before baking.