Mexican Cornbread Casserole

This recipe has been modified and updated from it’s original version.

 Call me crazy, but this sort of recipe was completely new to me.

Mexican Cornbread Casserole?

What is that?

Lucky for me, a friend shared a version of this clean eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole with me and I knew you would love it too!

The BEST Clean Eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole | This healthy, easy, and gluten-free recipe contains no processed ingredients and TONS of veggies aka WHOLE FOODS like onion, spinach, bell pepper, and salsa! It can be made with ground beef or any other meat such as buffalo, venison, or ground turkey. If you are looking for a new from scratch homemade family meal this one's for you!

Once I recreated it with all the healthiest ingredients I knew I had to share it with you!

This recipe is definitely “healthified” from other versions floating around Pinterest.

Besides the fact that this meal is healthy and hearty, you will love how simple it is to assemble: cornbread layer, meat layer, and cheese. Viola!

The BEST Clean Eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole | This healthy, easy, and gluten-free recipe contains no processed ingredients and TONS of veggies aka WHOLE FOODS like onion, spinach, bell pepper, and salsa! It can be made with ground beef or any other meat such as buffalo, venison, or ground turkey. If you are looking for a new from scratch homemade family meal this one's for you!

The cornbread does not contain oil or refined sugar and still tastes like, yep you guessed it, real cornbread!

Greek yogurt and coconut sugar are amazing substitutes in many recipes including this one! I also used my Simply Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend instead of whole wheat flour. If you are not gluten free, feel free to substitute whole wheat flour!

Clean Eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole #healthy #family #dinner Click To Tweet

The BEST Clean Eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole | This healthy, easy, and gluten-free recipe contains no processed ingredients and TONS of veggies aka WHOLE FOODS like onion, spinach, bell pepper, and salsa! It can be made with ground beef or any other meat such as buffalo, venison, or ground turkey. If you are looking for a new from scratch homemade family meal this one's for you!

If you are curious about the corn and black beans in this recipe, know they are optional ingredients.  I choose to add those two ingredients when I need to stretch the meal further. If you are feeding more than 5 hungry mouths I would add them!

As a family of 4, we can easily have this Mexican Cornbread as dinner for two nights. Score!

The less work I have to do each night for dinner is a win in my book! I typically serve this with veggies and dip or a salad. Chips and salsa are also a great addition! My favorite brand are Beanitos! They are made from beans, super duper healthy and DELISH!

If you would like to make this healthy casserole dairy free, omit the shredded cheese and use oil in place of the plain Greek yogurt. 

Okay, onto this clean eating Mexican Cornbread Casserole recipe…it’s a keeper! Enjoy friends!

Mexican Cornbread Casserole

This healthy, easy, and gluten-free recipe contains no processed ingredients and TONS of veggies aka WHOLE FOODS like onion, spinach, bell pepper, and salsa! It can be made with ground beef or any other meat such as buffalo, venison, or ground turkey. If you are looking for a new from scratch homemade family meal this one's for you!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Leftovers, Main Dish
Cuisine: American, Gluten Free
Keyword: clean eating, cornbread, dinner, family, gluten free, healthy, mexican
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 350kcal
Cost: $10.00

Equipment

  • 9x13 pan

Ingredients

Meat Mixture

  • 16 oz ground turkey, beef, buffalo, or venison
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 bell pepper, diced
  • 1 tsp ground chili powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 cup Salsa
  • 2 cups baby spinach
  • *optional add-ins: 1 cup of corn and 1 can black beans. drained and rinsed

Cornbread Mixture

  • 34 cup cornmeal
  • 1 cup plain unsweetened almond milk
  • 3/4 cup gluten-free flour blend G&S GF Flour Blend
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 Tbsp plain Greek yogurt

Topping

  • 1 cup shredded cheese

Instructions

Meat Mixture

  • Brown ground turkey with diced onion and bell pepper. Once browned mix in chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper. *You will want to add in corn and black beans now.
  • Next, add in salsa and baby spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted. Set aside for now.

Cornbread Mixture

  • In a medium bowl, mix all cornbread ingredients. Pour into a greased 9x13 glass pan.

Assemble Casserole

  • Top cornbread batter with meat/veggie mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese.
  • Bake at 400F for 30 minutes or until cheese in melted and cornbread is baked. Top with Greek yogurt, salsa, olives, or avocado!

Notes

If you are lactose intolerant, forgo the cheese topping and use oil or butter in place of the Greek yogurt. I promise it tastes just as delicious!

35 Comments

  1. Pingback: Healthy Mexican Lasagna Recipe - HappiHomemade with Sammi Ricke

  2. Pingback: The Best DIY Taco Seasoning - HappiHomemade with Sammi Ricke

  3. Well, it turned out tasting great, and it looks good. Now I need to decide which is more photogenic, Sammi or the cornbread casserole!

  4. Very good!

  5. I made this yesterday and it was a hit with my family!

    I doubled the cornbread mixture and put a layer on top and bottom. I added corn and black beans and also diced zucchini, which was a great way to sneak in a vegetable that no one in my family particularly likes…it was about the same texture as the corn and they didn’t even notice!

    Thanks!

    • That is so awesome, Brittany! I love how you added cornbread to the top and zucchini to the meat mixture. #gethealthygirl ๐Ÿ™‚ You made my day with your sweet comment. There is nothing more a recipe blogger could ask for than others to love her recipes too. Thanks so much girl!

  6. This recipe is making me hungry! It looks so tasty ๐Ÿ™‚ Thanks so much for sharing on the Healthy Living Link Party! We hope to see you back tonight ๐Ÿ™‚

  7. Your Mexican Cornbread Casserole looks delicious, we will just love it! Hope you have a great week and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Miz Helen

  8. Angela @marathonsandmotivation.com

    This sounds amazing! Something my entire family will love!!

  9. Hello Sammi,

    Thank you for linking up at our Home Matters Party!

    I am so glad you shared this recipe! It looks wonderful!

    Have a lovely day,

    Randi ๐Ÿ™‚

    #HomeMattersParty

  10. Sammi, I “healthify” everything, too! This looks wonderful! We love eating casseroles like this.

  11. I love Mexican food and cornbread so this recipe is a no-brainer for me. Can’t wait to try it out. Thank you for sharing at the Snickerdoodle Create Bake Make link party!

  12. Sounds fantastic!
    Thanks
    Michelle

  13. This would be a great way to use up leftover Thanksgiving turkey!

  14. Mmmmm… This sounds wonderful! Thank you for the recipe! -Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures

    ‘Visiting from the Family Joy Link Party!

  15. I’ve never heard of a cornbread casserole before! I will be trying this one though ๐Ÿ™‚
    Thank you for linking up at the Talented Tuesday Link Party! I hope you join us again tomorrow ๐Ÿ™‚

  16. Hi ladies!

    Thanks for linking up with us on Momma Told Me. This recipe looks so good. I will put it on my list of things to try!

    ~Jen

  17. Thanks so much for coming and linking up with us over at the #HomeMattersParty – we hope to see you again next week! Feel free to bring a friend! ๐Ÿ™‚

  18. Okay, this looks delicious! And as I always say, if it’s gluten-free, it’s for me!

  19. Looks delicious!

  20. I only had cornbread for the first time last year. Cornbread casserole a new one for me. Look great though. Julie
    Thank you for linking up with #wordlesswednesday
    co-host – http://www.julieinthemaking.com/

    • Cornbread can be a bit dry, but when you combine it with all the meat and veggies it is moist and delicious. Thanks for stopping by Julie and for providing us with a great link up opportunity each Wednesday.

  21. Nothing like a hearty casserole for cold winter days. I love this. Found you over at Two Cup Tuesday. I’d love it if you would link this to my Tuesday recipe link party, Tickle My Tastebuds.

    Cheers!

  22. I just made this recipe and it was so yummy!!! Would recommend it!!! It was a hit in our house!!!

  23. any idea calories Sammi??

    • Hi Liz! There are about 2000 calories total. We were able to get 9 servings from the pan so about 225 calories/piece. I topped mine with some plain Greek yogurt and salsa which made it about 300 calories total! I hope you enjoy this meal as much as we do ๐Ÿ™‚

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