This Skinny Tamale pie is my version of my Grandmother’s famous recipe from the 1950s. Everything you expect with half the calories. Enjoy it with a salad and a glass of ice-cold beer.
You may remember that when I visited my cousin in South Carolina, part of the reason I did that was to get some of my grandmother’s recipes. I made both her Lemon Jello Cake and her tamale pie when I was there.
The tamale pie was just like when my grandmother would make it, delicious, but I thought it a little heavy and fatty. My Nana had her tall husband, Warren Boswell, her sons, Warren Jr., Hamilton, Charles, and Robert, and her daughter, Georgia. That’s a lot of people and all of them were tall, strong, and worked hard. My grandmother co-owned several pharmacies, my grandfather was an inventor and had a fleet of waste management trucks. Her children were also entrepreneurs, a minister, a principal, a nurse, and a US Army major.
Skinny Tamale Pie – Boswell Style
Looking at the original recipe, it called for two pounds of ground beef and half a pound of sausage. The original recipe comes in at a whopping 568 calories and 35 grams of fat. It was a big family, but that’s still a lot of fat. When I got home from our trip, I filed the recipe away to look at again. Then, I had some health concerns and my doctor told me I needed to limit my fat intake. I still wanted to make Nana’s tamale pie, but I had to skinny it down – without losing flavor.
I saw a jar of Ham Base from the Better Than Bullion people and decided to try it. It gives the flavor of ham, but not the fat. I knew this was the answer to my tamale pie dilemma. If you can’t find Ham Base at your market, of course, it’s available on Amazon. My Skinny Tamale Pie comes in at 212 calories with only 7 grams of fat. I would say that’s a big improvement, right?
Email Me the Recipe
Skinny Tamale Pie Boswell Style
Equipment
If you purchase any of the products through these affiliate links, I get a few pennies that help keep The Good Plate open. I use these products myself and want you to be able to easily find them.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon *olive oil
- ½ green pepper, chopped
- ½ onion, chopped
- 1 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ teaspoon *ham base
- ½ 10 oz can corn
- 1 10 oz can tomato sauce
- 1 5 oz can pitted olives
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 cups cornmeal
- 1 cup hot water
- 1 10 oz can diced tomatoes
- ½ cup cheddar, grated
Instructions
- Mise en place
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 green pepper, 1/2 onion, 1 cloves garlicSaute onion, garlic and pepper in fat until the onions are translucent.
- 1 pound ground beef, 1/2 teaspoon ham baseAdd meat and ham base and cook until meat is thoroughly cooked.
- 1/2 10 oz can corn, 1 10 oz can tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin seedsAdd corn, tomato sauce, chili powder and cumin seeds.
- 1 cups cornmeal, 1 cup hot waterPour boiling water over cornmeal and mix thoroughly.
- 1 5 oz can pitted olives, 1 10 oz can diced tomatoesAdd to meat mixture along with olives and diced tomatoes.
- Lightly grease a casserole dish.
- 1/2 cup cheddarPour into casserole and top with cheese.
- Bake at 350 F/ 176 C for about 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly browned.
- Serve with a big salad. Enjoy
You’re so detailed! Thank you for that. The recipe was easy to follow. I especially like that you have photos showing what things are supposed to look like as you go along. Oh, and the tamale pie was tasty, too.
I liked your writing so much! The story you wrote tugged my heart enough to want to try the recipe. I’m glad I did. It was delicious and even my picky kids loved it.
Five stars!
❤️❤️❤️
I didn’t have cornmeal so I used blueberry muffin mix. It turned out sweet. Is it supposed to be sweet? If it’s supposed to be sweet, then I don’t like it.
I remember eating this as a kid and really liking it. Thanks for doing this.
I made it with ground turkey and it was delish! Thanks :)
Wow! That was too spicy. We didn’t like it. Sorry.
My grandmother used to make this, too. I agree it always seemed a little fatty. I made it your way, and I really liked it. I added chipotle powder so it had a smokey flavor. Great stuff!
To each his own, I guess. It wasn’t quite as spicy as I like it so I added some habanero to it. Just right.
This brought back a lot of memories. My grandmother made this, too, and we all loved it. I put extra olives in because we really like olives. Thanks for bringing back the memories.
Good stuff! I subscribed to your newsletter, too.
I don’t understand how to make this. Can someone help me?
It was good.
This recipe, sans “ham base”, is exactly as written on the side of the Albers Cornmeal box (circa 1948). I’ve been making this for 65 years now. How is this recipe considered “skinny”? I’m always looking to improve the quality of the foods I fix.
I didn’t know the recipe was on the Albers Cornmeal box – and that’s the kind of cornmeal I use. Thank you for that. As to it being considered “skinny”, my grandmother’s original recipe comes in at 568 calories and 35 grams of fat, while this one comes in at 212 calories and 7 grams of fat. It’s not fat-free, but it’s less than it was, and still just as tasty.