Updside Down Salsa Cornbread

Updside Down Salsa Cornbread
4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 pound ground chuck
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 medium bell pepper, cut in rings and seeded
2 cups buttermilk self-rishing corn meal mix
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 jar (16 ounces) thick and chunky (medium hot) salsa
1 1/4 cups milk
1 egg
In a deep 8-inch iron skillet with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, cook ground chuck, chopped onions, salt, garlic salt and chili powder together, only until ground chuck is no longer red. Turn heat off. Move mixture to one side of skillet, and place half of pepper rings in bottom. Move the meat mixture onto peppers and place the remaining peppers on the other half of the pan. Spread ground chuck mixture evenly over pepper rings.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
In mixing bowl, combine corn meal mix, sugar, cheese, salsa, milk, egg and 3 tablespoons vegetable oil. Mix well. Spread over mixture in skillet. Bake for 40 minutes, or until done. Turn upside down on serving dish.
Serves six to eight.
Editor's note: This recipe won the 2001 National Cornbread Festival sponsored by Martha White Corn Meal and Lodge Manufacturing.
Nutrition values per serving: 355 calories, 23 g fat, 13 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 22 g protein, 95 mg cholesterol, 581 mg sodium.
Lodge Manufacturing