My first experience with polenta involved the pre-made slice and serve variety. Needless to say, it wasn't until I tasted the creamy, bubbling, freshly-made version that I discovered my love for the simple cornmeal dish. And, oh, what things you can do with it! Read on for six creative recipes.
1. Poached Egg over Polenta with Olive-Herb Pesto from Danielle of The Trail of Crumbs: Just one look at the photo from this recipe (above) will have you drooling over this savory breakfast dish.
2. Roasted Garlic Polenta Dippers from Edible Perspective: Start with a whole head of garlic, roast it, and use those creamy, sweet cloves to make baked polenta bars — hello, new finger-friendly appetizer!
3. Baked Eggs with Creamy Polenta, Spinach & Garlic: Polenta makes a creamy addition to classic baked eggs.
4. Polenta al Forno With Spinach, Ricotta and Fontina from The New York Times: A polenta casserole — what more could we ask for?
5. Breakfast Polenta with Figs and Mascarpone from Martha Stewart: Try polenta instead of oatmeal for breakfast and don't skimp on the sweet additions of figs and honey.
6. Roast of Incredible Game Birds with Proper Polenta from Jamie Oliver: Polenta serves as a creamy bed for roasted game birds (and works great with chicken, quail and cornish game hens) and catches all the juices.
Related: Good Question: What is Polenta?
(Image: Leela Cyd Ross)
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Stephanie, you can make polenta in the pressure cooker, too! 8 minutes high pressure!
Here are all the details:
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/2010/08/polenta-five-ways.html
Ciao,
L
... and, in the microwave!! using a heavy, covered glass baking dish, start with boiling water, salt and corn meal and cook in 5 minute increments, stirring at the end of each increment, until softened to your taste. stir in milk, cheese or butter -- or any combo thereof! -- plus any herbs or other add ins, if using, at the end, cover and let sit a few minutes. far less oversight needed and virtually impossible to burn or overcook, but with the same creamy texture as stove top.
I just made polenta for the first time a few days ago! After all the fuss over how hard it is to make, I was pleased to discover that's total bull. :) And so so so yummy. I posted the recipe to my blog, if anyone's interested (you can make it vegetarian or vegan depending on your protein preference):
Roasted Mustard "Chicken" & Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta
http://www.braisenwoman.com/2013/02/recipe-roasted-mustard-chicken-and.html
Also, when testing the polenta recipe I had a TON of leftovers, so I refrigerated the leftover polenta and my partner and I had a week's worth of breakfasts - warmed polenta (in the microwave, it returns creamy and porridge-like upon reheating) with maple syrup and almond milk. Super comforting.
I also use the microwave method. MUCH better than stovetop.
Martha Stewart's breakfast polenta sounds amazing!! I love making polenta fries for my son...he loves them!
http://www.bitesforbabies.com/recipes/crispy-polenta-cubes-with-ratatouille/
Cafe De Lucchi in San Francisco's North Beach serves two types of soft polenta: a) with bacon, blue cheese crumb, a drizzle of maple syrup topped with a poached egg b) BBQ pulled pork and a poached egg. What an amazing breakfast!
#5's a dead link, try this: http://www.marthastewart.com/334271/breakfast-polenta-with-figs-and-mascarpo
It can also be made in a rice cooker! I adore my Zojirushi. 1 cup polenta, water to the 2-cup brown rice line, pinch of salt, white rice setting. It works! Toss in a parmesan rind for extra deliciousness. Stir once or twice during cooking if you think of it, but it seems to work pretty darn well just being ignored.
OK, but what do you do with your leftover polenta? I saw that you can grill and pan fry it, but I need a little direction for that... Help!