Condé Nast House & Garden – September 2019

104 house garden september 2019

sWEET

CInnamon

TamalE

SWEET
CINNAmON
TAmALE
SERVES 8
Danielausesfresh,home-made
masainhertamales.Ifusinga
store-boughtvariety,chooseone
withapronouncedcornflavourto
mostcloselymatchherresults.

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1 1/2 cups masa harina
1t baking powder
1t kosher salt
1t ground cinnamon, plus more
for serving
4 ears of corn, husked, kernels
removed, or 4 cups frozen,
thawed

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room

temperature

1/2 cup raw or demerara sugar

1t vanilla extract

1 cup crème fraîche

2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese,

plus more for serving

1. Preheat oven to 160°C.
   Lightly coat a 20×20cm
   metal baking pan with
   nonstick spray. Whisk masa,
   baking powder, salt and 1t
   cinnamon in a medium bowl.


2. Pulse corn kernels in a
   blender or food processor
   until very coarsely puréed;
   just a few seconds should do
   it. 3. using an electric mixer

on medium-high speed,

beat butter and sugar until

pale and slightly fluffy

(about 3 minutes). Beat

in corn purée and vanilla.

reduce speed to low and

beat in dry ingredients;

mix until batter is smooth

(about 2 minutes). scrape

into prepared pan and cover

tightly with foil. set baking

pan inside a large roasting

pan; pour in boiling water

to come halfway up sides of

baking pan. 4. Bake tamale

until top springs back when

lightly pressed and a tester

inserted into the centre

comes out clean (75–85

minutes). Let cool slightly

in pan before serving.

5. Mix crème fraîche and
   2/3 cup feta in a small
   bowl. scoop tamale onto
   plates and top with crème
   fraîche mixture, more
   feta, and a dusting of
   cinnamon. 6. Tamales are
   traditionally wrapped in
   individual corn husks and
   steamed, but baking a
   single large-format tamale
   in a foil-covered pan set
   in a roasting pan of hot
   water produces a similarly
   tender texture. The result
   is a moist, barely sweet
   cake with pudding vibes. n