south of the border tamales

one of the blessings of speaking fluent spanish is being able to make spanish food

2 cans of whole kernel corn drained....my secret i use cream style corn it gives it better flavor
2 tablespoons water
2 cups of masa harina corn tortilla mix
3.4 cup warm water
1.4 cup corn oil
2 tbls sugar
8 large dried corn husks
1 cup 4 ounce can diced green chili peppers drained

in a blender or food processor pulse blend or process the corn and 2 tablespoons water until coarsley pureed. In a large bowl stir together the pureed corn masa harina 3.4 cup water oil and sugar until a soft moist dough forms...if using the cream still corn add about a cup more of the masa..the dough should look like a soft cookie dough. If the dough is too dry add additional warm water 1 tbls at a time...set aside. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the husks and reduce the heat. Simmer uncovered about 5 minutes or until soft. Drain. To assemble the tamales place each husk on a flat surface with its shorter tapered point towards you spread 3 to 4 tablespoons of the dough on eash husk begining 3.4 inchues from the top and ending at least 1 1.2 inches from the bottom point leaving a 1.1.2 inch border at the sides. Sprinkle 2 tbls of the cheese and 2 tsp of the chili pepers down the center of each. Fold the sides of the husk up and over the filling then fold in half to bring the top and bottom ends together and tie them closed with a piece of string. In a large skillet with a tight fitting lid place the tamales on an opened steamer basket or on a wire rack. Add enough water to the skillet to cover the bottom of the skillet making sure the water sits below the basket or rack.......note...you can add whatever you want in the center of your tamales i usually like to make chicken sour cream cheese and anything spicy with it but you could add pork or whatever you want just be sure that your meat is all precooked and shreeded before you add it with your tamales...hope you enjoy