Recipe: Ancho Pork and Hominy Soup with Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins

ANCHO PORK AND HOMINY SOUP

"This very satisfying winter soup is hearty, yet a lighter alternative to chili for game days. It is a one-pot meal for cold blustery days and makes your house smell wonderful! Adding the hominy, in addition to corn, really makes this chunky, pretty soup taste like summer."

2 1/2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
2 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 pounds pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided use
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
2 small green bell peppers, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
4 to 5 garlic cloves, minced
2 quarts (8 cups) low-sodium chicken broth, homemade or store bought
3 cans (15 ounces each) white hominy, drained*
1 (28 ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, with juice
1 (16 ounce) bag frozen sweet corn, thawed**
Tortilla chips or Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins (recipe follows), for serving

In a large bowl, combine the ancho chile powder, oregano, paprika, cumin, and salt. Set 1 1/2 teaspoons of the spice mixture aside and add the pork to the remaining spice mixture. Toss to coat well and let stand for 15 minutes.

Place a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the seasoned pork and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove the pork from the pot and set aside.

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low; add the onion and bell peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute more. (If the spices stick to the pot, add a little of the broth to help deglaze the spices.)

Return the pork to the pan and stir in the reserved spice mixture, broth, hominy, tomatoes, and corn. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently, uncovered, until nice and thick, about 45 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips or Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins.

*Hominy is dried maize that has been soaked in lye, and is popular in Mexican dishes such as menudo and in the deep South, where it's often dried and ground to produce "hominy grits," similar to cornmeal or polenta.

**If you make this soup when corn is in season, by all means substitute 2 cups of fresh corn kernels (from about 4 ears) for the frozen corn.

Makes 10 servings
Source: Mr. Sunday's Soups by Lorraine Wallace and Chris Wallace

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JALAPENO CORNBREAD MUFFINS

1 cup medium-ground yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, melted
1 cup fresh corn kernels (from about 2 ears) or thawed frozen corn
2 to 3 jalapeno chiles, or to taste, stemmed, seeded, and minced

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and grease a 12-cup muffin pan.

In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and add the egg, buttermilk, butter, corn, and jalapenos. Whisking from the center, combine the ingredients into a loose and slightly lumpy batter. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the muffins begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool the pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 12 Muffins
Source: Mr. Sunday's Soups by Lorraine Wallace and Chris Wallace