Baked Chili With Cornmeal Crust

I got this recipe out of my 300 Calorie cookbook.  We have been trying to eat healthier once in a while and still enjoy delicious food!  We love Chili and Cornbread so I thought this would be a new solution for a chili fix.  This recipe was very quick and easy to make without having to cook chili all day.  It really did taste like chili even though there were no beans in it!  The flavor was great.  I had it for lunch the next day and it was even better!

Baked Chili With Cornmeal Crust

Yield: 8 servings

1 lb. lean (at least 80%) ground beef
1 small onion, chopped (1/4 Cup)
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. Original Bisquick mis
3 Tbsp. water
1 can (14.5 oz) whole tomatoes, undrained
1 can ( 15.25 oz) whole kernel corn, drained
1 tsp. salt
3/4 Cup Original Bisquick mix
3/4 Cup Yellow cornmeal
2/3 Cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten

1.  Heat oven to 350 degrees.  In 2-Qt. saucepan, cook beef and onion over medium-high heat 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until beef is thoroughly cooked; drain.
2.  In a small bowl, mix chili powder, 1 Tbsp Bisquick mix and the water; add to beef mixture.  Stir in tomatoes, corn and salt; break up tomatoes.  Heat to boiling, stirring frequently.  Pour into ungreased 8-inch square (2 Qt.) glass baking dish or 2-Qt. casserole dish.
3.  In a medium bowl, stir all remaining ingredients with wire whisk or fork until blended.  Pour evenly over beef mixture. 
4.  Bake uncovered 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.

I did a few things differently.  I used ground venison which is very lean.  I did not used whole tomatoes, I used crushed tomatoes, next time I think i would used diced tomatoes.  This is really your  preference.  I'm not a fan of tomatoes so I liked the fact that with the crushed tomatoes there was still still texture but not huge chunks.  When I make this again I will cook it a bit longer to make sure the cornmeal crust is more crispy.  At the end, we added cheddar cheese to this and it was delicious!  Make sure you mix in the crust when eating it because it is much better that way!  Enjoy!