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Breakfast Polenta Pizza

June 1, 2014 Entrees, Menu No Comments

I am often asked when an Italian breakfast will be featured on my food blog. A true Italian breakfast is very simple, usually consisting of a café e latte or a cappuccino, bread, some pastries and biscotti and maybe some fruit…which doesn’t really leave me with much to discuss. I have, however, always had the intentions to put some sort of breakfast meal together using Italian inspired ingredients. I’ve talked about breakfast strata in the past (you can visit my recipe by clicking here), and of course there are the meat pies and frittatas that are enjoyed during the Easter season. Using the key ingredients from the Easter pies as a starting point (meats, cheeses and eggs), I decided to put together a breakfast pizza.

When I was a kid, breakfast pizza meant enjoying a left-over cold slice from the night before as I watched my Saturday morning cartoons. But for this recipe, I’m going a little more elegant and classy, starting with the crust. Instead of a traditional bread crust, I’m making a crust out of polenta (corn meal or corn grits mixed with hot water, salt, butter and parmesan cheese for additional flavor). Making a polenta crust may sound intimidating, as polenta usually involves a good 25-30 minutes of consistent stirring. But for this polenta crust recipe, you actually only have to stir for about 5-7 minutes, until the polenta pulls away from the pot as you stir. The batter then gets poured onto a baking sheet and shaped into a crust. After baking the crust for 20 minutes, you are now ready to top your pizza with whatever toppings you like. Anything from traditional bacon, eggs and cheddar to sausage and peppers, to spinach, tomatoes and feta. Another ten minutes in the oven, and you’re ready to enjoy your breakfast pizza. This is a dish that allows you to be creative and to have fun. It’s also a good meal to get the kids involved…which as all parents know is always the trick to get your kids to eat something new! And be sure to leave your comments on this post to let us know what breakfast pizza topping you have come up with.

Breakfast Polenta Pizza

Step 1: The Crust
3 cups water
1/2 tspn salt
1 cup corn meal or corn grits (either will work)
1-1/2 tbspn butter
*Note – these measurements will make a crust that will fill a half of a 9×13 baking sheet. You can double the ingredients for a full pan

In a large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil over high heat. Gradually stir in the corn meal/corn grits. Reduce heat and stir frequently with a wooden spoon for about 5-7 minutes, until the mixture pulls away from the side of the pot. Stir in the butter until mixed in.

Carefully pour the mixture onto a 9×13 baking sheet that has been lightly greased and lightly dusted with additional corn meal/corn grits. Using a spatula, start to flatten out the batter and shape it into a square crust in the middle of the pan (see note above for measurements to fill the entire pan). Next, as the mixture starts to slightly cool, lightly oil your hands and continue to press the mixture into a crust shape, about 1/2″ thick. Be sure to add a slightly higher lip around the edge to prevent any toppings from running off. You can also make small divots in the crust with your thumb, which will also help contain any liquid toppings. When the dough is shaped, place the baking sheet into a 400˚ oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and proceed to add your toppings.

Step 2: The Toppings
Once the crust is removed from the oven and is slightly cooled, it is time to add your toppings. For my first attempt, I kept it simple and added cooked bacon bits, topped with 3 beaten eggs and some shredded cheddar cheese. You can add whatever toppings you like. Peppers and sausage, and spinach, tomatoes and feta pies are next on my list. Be sure that your meat toppings are pre-cooked before adding them to the pizza. Whatever you choose, add the toppings to the polenta crust first, then add the beaten eggs, then top with shredded cheese if you wish. Three eggs will be enough for the smaller crust. Six eggs should be enough for a full size crust, but you can adjust accordingly. When the pizza crust is topped, place it back in the 400˚ oven for another 10 minutes. Carefully remove it from the oven, slice it up and enjoy.

The polenta crust, shaped and ready to bake.

The polenta crust, shaped and ready to bake.

pizza3

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Baked Polenta with Shrimp, Asparagus and Peppers

January 19, 2014 Entrees, Menu No Comments

I’ve been planning to put together a recipe that incorporates polenta for a while now. If you check back again in another month or so, I’m hoping to have a breakfast polenta dish to share. But for today, I’m talking about a baked polenta dish mixed with shrimp, asparagus and red bell pepper. It’s like an Italian version of shrimp and grits. Grits and polenta are both, after all, very similar porridge style dishes – grits being made from stone ground white corn and polenta from yellow corn. The preparation, for the most part, is fairly easy. Sauté the shrimp, asparagus and peppers in garlic, olive oil and the zest and juice of one lemon, then fold into prepared polenta and bake. But it’s the type of polenta that you use that will determine if this dish is just good or out of this world.

Which polenta to use?
There are two common forms of polenta. There’s the pre-made tubes, which I like to use sliced thin for grilling or baking, topped with sautéed veggies or maybe a nice slice of cheese and some tomatoes. Then there’s the traditional version made from boiled cornmeal, often mixed with a little butter and maybe some parmesan cheese to form a creamy porridge-like dish. Because I wanted to mix in some other ingredients, then bake it in a casserole dish, the traditional method was what I needed to make. If you’ve never made traditional polenta, it involves about 20-30 minutes of cooking and a lot of stirring. A LOT of stirring. Similar to risotto (the other Italian dish that requires dedicated stirring), the trick is to keep a constant stir going to maintain a nice, creamy consistency. At first, it seems like a lot of work. But as you get into it and develop a nice rhythm, it almost becomes like a well-calculated dance. You allow it to get away from you just enough, then you bring it back together and gently keep it moving, and then you repeat this form until the dance is done. The end result is always worth the effort.

While doing my research for this recipe, I found yet a third option for making polenta…instant polenta. The cooking method and preparation are very similar to the traditional style. You add the cornmeal mixture to boiling water, and you stir. Only it’s done in literally under 5 minutes. Now I’m not exactly sure what is done to the cornmeal to make it instant, but there were enough recipes available online from reputable chefs that used instant polenta. It’s gotta be good then, right?

Wrong. Gotta say, I was not happy with the instant stuff. Yes, it did take under 5 minutes to prepare. But you go from start to finish in such a quick time, that you really have no control over the polenta. There is no careful stirring, no playing, no dance. It goes from liquid to solid so quickly that I felt that it just got away from me. I didn’t even have time to properly season it as I normally would. I did make sure to add some extra seasoning when folding in the shrimp, asparagus and peppers, but would have preferred to add a little butter while cooking the polenta. And I saw no chance of doing that while using the instant, which left it very bland and dry on its own.

To help add a little extra flavor, I put together a quick lemon greek yogurt sauce to use as a topping. This gave it a well needed, flavorful punch (see recipe below).

The bottom line here is use the traditional method for a dish like this. It’s worth the time and effort, and you will be very happy with the end result!

Baked Polenta with Shrimp, Asparagus and Peppers

Ingredients:
12-15 raw jumbo shrimp, cleaned, shelled and devenined
1 small bundle (12-15 pieces) of asparagus, cut into 1″ pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into small pieces
2 tbspn olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice plus zest of one lemon

Basic Polenta recipe
(courtesy of Giada DeLaurentiis)
6 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:
In a large pan, heat oil and garlic over medium heat. Add asparagus and peppers, stir and cook until veggies are tender. Add the shrimp, continue to stir until all shrimp are pink. Add the lemon juice and zest, mix well. Remove from heat, cover to keep warm. Set aside.

Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a heavy large saucepan. Add 2 teaspoons of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the butter, and stir until melted.

Fold in the shrimp, asparagus and peppers. Pour the mixture into a lightly greased baking dish. Place the baking dish into a 350˚ oven, bake for 15-20 minutes. Slice, serve and enjoy!

Lemon Greek Yogurt Sauce
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
Juice plus zest of 1 lemon
2 tbspn olive oil
1/4 tspn salt

Optional:
1/4 tspn chopped parsley
2 tbspn crumbled feta

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

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Polenta with Greens

March 21, 2012 Appetizer, Menu No Comments

One of my favorite parts of a traditional Italian meal is the side dishes. Some of the most popular traditional side dishes consist of a fresh-picked green (mostly either broccoli rabe, swiss chard, escarole or spinach), usually sautéed in garlic and olive oil. Today, I’m showing you how you can double your pleasure by simply combining Italian greens with my other favorite side dish…polenta! Polenta of course, is a hearty, stick-to-your-ribs meal that is made by stirring together cornmeal and heated liquid, until you get a thick, slightly creamy, slightly mushy consistency. By adding greens to polenta, you not only get a good balance of hearty and healthy, but you also get a tasty old world combination that in my opinion goes toe-to-toe with any other traditional dish that you could name.

The prepping and serving of this dish is incredibly simple…once you get past the 20+ minute marathon of stirring and mixing the polenta (you can click here for Giada DeLaurentiis’ step-by-step instructions on how to prepare polenta). Once you have gotten past the polenta preparation, the rest is simple. Just steam and sauté your greens, and serve on top of a bed of polenta. If you’re feeling rustic, just mix it all together. If you’re going for presentation, gently pile the greens on top of the polenta and top with some fresh shaved parmesan cheese.

My personal favorite green to cook with, especially for this dish, is broccoli rabe. The slight bitterness is the perfect combination for the sweet, creamy polenta. You can add some tasty accent to the rabe by cooking it up with some onion and garlic, and even a little pancetta or bacon for an extra treat.

If you’re looking to make this during the week but don’t have the time to prepare a fresh batch of polenta, simply pick up one of the pre-cooked polenta tubes that are located in the produce section of your grocery store. I use these often, as they are very easy to prepare. Simply slice the polenta up into 1/2 inch slices, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and bake at 350˚ for about 10 minutes, or until crispy enough to your likeness. You can prepare the broccoli rabe on the stove top at the same time, and have this delicious meal on your table within 15 minutes!

POLENTA WITH GREENS

1. Preparing the Polenta
Courtesy of Giada DeLaurentiis
• 6 cups water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a heavy large saucepan. Add 2 teaspoons of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the butter, and stir until melted.

2. Preparing the Greens
• 2 lbs broccoli rabe, cut into 2-inch lengths, thick stems discarded
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• (Optional – 1/4 lb pancetta, sliced 1/8 inch thick and cut into tiny cubes)

In a large saucepan, bring 2 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli rabe and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain, shaking off the excess water. Wipe out the saucepan.

Add two tablespoons olive oil and pancetta to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden, 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the garlic to pancetta and cook, stirring, until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the broccoli rabe to the pancetta, season with salt and pepper and cook over moderately high heat until tender, 3 to 4 minutes.

Again, pancetta is optional – you can skip adding if you prefer.

3. Combining the Polenta and the Greens
When polenta and greens are done, you can either plate individual servings, by placing some greens on a bed of polenta, or you can serve family style by combining both in to a large serving bowl.

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Summer Sides: Grilled Squash and Polenta

July 11, 2009 Appetizer, Menu 1 Comment

Here are a couple of side dishes that I like to serve when cooking on the grill. Both are wickedly easy, go with just about any grilled dish, and both share the same core ingredients: salt, pepper and olive oil.I prefer using sea salt. It’s much better than regular table salt, and doesn’t pack quite the punch as kosher salt.

First up are yellow squash and zucchini. I usually use on of each for two servings. Just slice the zucchini and squash into thin slices, but not too thin – you want them to hold together while cooking. Place the slices in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil, add salt and pepper, and stir. Cook them over medium heat for about 5-7 minutes, until they start to get brown and slightly crispy. Flip the chips and cook for another 3-4 minutes. They go great as a side or even as a sandwich topper. I suggest using some sort of grilling tray or even some foil to keep the chips from falling through the grates. They’re very inexpensive and easy to find, usually available in any grocery store or even a Dollar Store . You can cook directly on the grates, but expect at least one or two casualties to fall through.

The second side dish that I grill up regularly is polenta. Polenta is an old world dish made of cornmeal and served several ways. I’ve had it both as a soft dish similar to mashed potatoes and baked like a cornbread. While it is often considered a peasant food, often used back during the depression, it has recently become somewhat of a delicacy. It’ not uncommon that you’ll find it as a pricey appetizer at some of your fancier restaurants. A friend of mine once saw it on a menu for $14.95 and said to me “do you know how many tons of polenta my mother could make for $14.95?!?!” What I like to use is the pre-cooked tubes of polenta, which can be found in the produce section of the grocery store. I simply slice them into about 1/4″ slices, brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Again, just place them on the grill at medium hear for about 5-7 minutes until they start to get slightly brown and crispy, flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes. I like to top them with a slice of mozzarella or sharp provolone for the last few minutes, then serve them with either a side of sauce or salsa as a topping. They are absolutely delicious, and you can even pass them off as mini pizza crisps for the kids!

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