Polenta is a versatile dish that can be served as a main course or a side dish. It is made from cornmeal and can be cooked in a variety of ways. This recipe features polenta cooked with tomato, bacon, and cheese. The tomato and bacon add flavor and richness to the polenta, while the cheese adds a creamy texture. This dish is simple to make and can be ready in under an hour.
In addition to the polenta with tomato, bacon, and cheese recipe, this article also includes recipes for:
* Polenta with mushrooms and spinach
* Polenta with sausage and peppers
* Polenta with roasted vegetables
* Polenta with pesto and grilled chicken
These recipes are all easy to make and can be tailored to your own taste preferences. Whether you are looking for a hearty main course or a light and flavorful side dish, you are sure to find a polenta recipe in this article that you will enjoy.
HERB AND TOMATO POLENTA
Provided by Katie Lee Biegel
Categories side-dish
Time 45m
Yield 4 to 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 13
Steps:
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and tomatoes. Cook the tomatoes, stirring occasionally, until they start to blister and release some of their juices, 8 to 10 minutes. Toss in the garlic and season generously with salt and pepper. Cook another 1 minute, then remove from the heat.
- In a saucepan over low heat, stir the Parmesan and butter into the Cooked Polenta, thinning with milk as desired. Turn off the heat, stir in the lemon zest, taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary.
- Transfer the polenta to a serving bowl. Use a spoon to create a shallow well and top with the tomatoes, torn basil, some black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
- Bring 6 cups of water to a rolling boil in a heavy-bottomed 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting, add the baking soda and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and pour the cornmeal into the water in a very slow stream from a measuring cup, all the while whisking in a circular motion to prevent lumps.
- Cook, vigorously stirring the polenta with a wooden spoon for about 10 seconds once every 5 minutes and making sure to scrape clean the bottom and corners of the pot, until the polenta has lost its raw cornmeal taste and becomes soft and smooth, about 30 minutes. If the polenta looks like it's drying out too quickly, continue cooking with the lid on. Cooked Polenta recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro.
POLENTA WITH TOMATO, BACON AND CHEESE
I wish I had a great story to go along with this dish, but sadly I don't. This is just one of those recipes that I created "thinking hmmm" what can I do to make Polenta a wee bit jazzier? I think the addition of the cheese and bacon did the trick. If you can't find apple wood smoked bacon in your area you can use regular...
Provided by Irisa Raina 9
Categories Other Appetizers
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- 1. DIRECTIONS:
- 2. Cut the bacon into small bite size pieces fry till crisp then drain and set aside.
- 3. Smash the garlic and mix with the cayenne pepper to make sure it is mixed thoroughly.
- 4. Once the bacon is done frying and you have removed it, in the same pan keeping about 1 teaspoon of the bacon grease, add the garlic & cayenne pepper mixture, cook for about 2 minutes.
- 5. Then add the tomato juice from the can & sugar. Cook this for about 5 minutes on a low flame.
- 6. Then add the tomatoes from the can, cook for about 10 minutes on low, you'll want all the juice pretty much absorbed.
- 7. When this is done keep warm, or put it in the refrigerator till you are ready to serve the Polenta. Warm it up before you assemble the dish.
- 8. Slice the Polenta into ¼ inch slices and fry in the butter. When the one side is all golden and browned, turn them over.
- 9. Cover with fresh grated Asiago cheese, continue frying till the other side is browned and the cheese is melted, add more butter if necessary.
- 10. PLATING:
- 11. Put the tomatoes on a serving dish spreading them around. Place the Polenta on top. Garnish it with the bacon.
POLENTA WITH ROASTED TOMATOES
Provided by Food Network Kitchen
Time 40m
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 450. Toss the tomatoes, olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a large ovenproof skillet. Roast in the oven until the tomatoes are charred around the edges, about 25 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 but keep the tomatoes inside.
- Meanwhile, bring 5 cups water to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Slowly whisk in the polenta until smooth and creamy. Add 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat, cover and keep warm.
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Slice the chard leaves into wide strips and the stems into 1-inch pieces. Boil the stems until almost tender, about 5 minutes, then add the leaves and cook until both are tender, about 3 more minutes. Drain the chard.
- Remove the skillet from the oven and place over medium-high heat. Push the tomatoes to one side, add the butter and swirl until the butter is golden brown. Add the chard and toss to coat. Divide the polenta among 4 bowls. Top with the tomatoes and chard. Season the cheese with salt and sprinkle over the top.
BAKED POLENTA WITH FRESH TOMATOES AND PARMESAN
This recipe is a perfect way to highlight and use fresh summer tomatoes. It makes a great side dish for grilled chicken or pork chops.
Provided by rjohl
Categories Side Dish Grain Side Dish Recipes Polenta Recipes
Time 40m
Yield 4
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Grease an 8x8 inch baking dish.
- Place the water, milk, and butter in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the polenta and stir with a wooden spoon until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup Parmesan cheese and 2 chopped basil leaves; season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the polenta to the prepared baking dish and arrange the remaining chilled pieces of butter over the top.
- Bake the polenta in the preheated oven until bubbly and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven.
- Decoratively arrange the slices of tomato over the top of the polenta, spread the remaining basil leaves over the tomatoes, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.
- Return to the oven and bake until the tomatoes are warm and the Parmesan cheese is bubbly, 5 to 10 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 427.6 calories, Carbohydrate 37.5 g, Cholesterol 56.5 mg, Fat 21.1 g, Fiber 3.4 g, Protein 22.4 g, SaturatedFat 11.9 g, Sodium 1013 mg, Sugar 6.8 g
BAKED POLENTA WITH TOMATO SAUCE AND RICOTTA
I turn to polenta when I am in need of some good, old-fashioned comfort food. I suspect it's because there is not much difference between polenta and the grits I was raised on in North Florida. This simple dish relies once again on my favorite tomato sauce and not much else other than freshly cooked polenta made better than ever with a little added ricotta.
Provided by Art Smith
Categories HarperCollins Hominy/Cornmeal/Masa Tomato Vegetarian Parmesan Basil Ricotta Healthy Dinner
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- To prepare the tomato sauce:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Place the tomatoes, yellow onion, and garlic in a baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until the garlic is soft and the skin is peeling away from the tomatoes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Remove the skin from the tomatoes and put in a saucepan. Squeeze the garlic out of the bulb and into the tomatoes. Remove the skin from the onion. Coarsely chop the onion and add to the tomatoes.
- Add the olive oil to the tomatoes and puree with a handheld immersion blender until smooth. You may need to add up to 1/3 cup water if there is not enough liquid. Season with salt. Warm the tomato sauce just prior to use.
- To prepare the polenta:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of water to a simmer and stream in the polenta. Whisk together until there are no lumps. Cover with a lid and continue to cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes. Be careful when you go to stir the polenta-it tends to spit out pieces of the cornmeal, which is very hot. Remove the polenta from the heat and stir in the olive oil and basil. Drop in teaspoon-size pieces of the ricotta cheese. Pour the polenta into an 8-inch square baking pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and let sit for 1 hour or until the polenta has firmed up. Bake the polenta in the oven for 15 minutes or until heated through. Cut the polenta into 8 equal pieces.
- To serve:
- Place 1/2 cup warm tomato sauce in 4 shallow bowls and top with two pieces of the polenta. Sprinkle with the chopped basil.
FRIED POLENTA WITH TOMATO BASIL SAUCE
Steps:
- Butter a 12 by 14-inch baking dish and set aside.
- In a large pot, bring the stock and milk to a boil. While whisking, slowly add the cornmeal and continue to whisk until thick, about 15 minutes. Stir in the red peppers and the blue cheese, if using. Pour the mixture into the baking dish and cool completely in refrigerator. When the polenta has cooled, cut into squares. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan. Place the polenta squares in the pan and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. In another saute pan, heat the remaining olive oil and add tomatoes and garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the wine and butter and reduce until sauce has thickened and then add the basil and thyme. Transfer the polenta to a platter and pour the tomato sauce over the squares.
CHEESY POLENTA
This versatile side dish would work great along with pork, chicken, beef or fish. The trick is to slowly add the cornmeal and whisk constantly to avoid lumps.
Provided by dadrules
Categories Side Dish Grain Side Dish Recipes Polenta Recipes
Time 35m
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring milk, water, and salt to a boil. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to low, and cover. Cook 20 minutes, until creamy, lifting the lid and stirring every 3 or 4 minutes to prevent sticking. Remove pot from stove, stir in pepper and butter. Gradually stir in cheese. Serve.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 231.6 calories, Carbohydrate 18.4 g, Cholesterol 37.9 mg, Fat 14.1 g, Fiber 1.4 g, Protein 8.2 g, SaturatedFat 8.3 g, Sodium 658.4 mg, Sugar 3.8 g
POLENTA BITES WITH BLUE CHEESE, TOMATOES, AND PINE NUTS
Categories Tomato Bake Blue Cheese Pine Nut Cornmeal Bon Appétit
Yield Makes 24
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Lightly butter 24 mini muffin cups (each about 1 3/4 inches in diameter with 1/2-inch-high sides).
- Bring broth to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; gradually whisk in cornmeal. Cook until mixture is very thick, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in Parmesan. Season with salt.
- Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons hot polenta into each muffin cup. Using back of spoon, pack polenta firmly into cups. Using finger, make indentation in center of each polenta tart for filling. Chill until cold and set, about 3 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled.)
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheet with foil. Using tip of knife, lift polenta tarts from pan. Transfer tarts, indented side up, to prepared baking sheet. Place 1 blue cheese cube in each indentation. Sprinkle green onion and pine nuts over cheese. Top each tart with 2 tomato quarters. Bake until cheese is melted and polenta is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Transfer tarts to platter; sprinkle with basil and serve.
EASY POLENTA WITH TOMATO SAUCE
My entire family loves this recipe. A quick baked polenta topped with red sauce. Very easy to make and great the next day too (and the day after that!) Top with additional Parmesan cheese if you like.
Provided by Jacquita
Categories Side Dish Grain Side Dish Recipes Polenta Recipes
Time 20m
Yield 6
Number Of Ingredients 5
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9 inch square baking dish.
- In a large pot, combine the milk and chicken stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When it is at a rolling boil, gradually whisk in the cornmeal, making sure there are no lumps. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring constantly until thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese.
- Pour the polenta into the prepared baking dish, and spread spaghetti sauce over the top.
- Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until sauce is bubbling.
POLENTA PIE WITH CHEESE AND TOMATO SAUCE
Provided by Ruth Cousineau
Categories Cheese Tomato Bake Vegetarian Quick & Easy Mozzarella Summer Gourmet
Yield Makes 4 to 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F. Oil a 9-inch pie plate or a 4-cup gratin dish with 1 teaspoon oil. 3Cut polenta roll crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices and line pie plate with half of slices, overlapping slices slightly to completely cover bottom of pie plate. Stir 1 tablespoon basil into 1 1/2 cups pasta sauce and spread over polenta, then sprinkle with half of mozzarella. Top with remaining half of polenta slices, then sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano and remaining half of mozzarella.
- Bake until bubbling and golden, about 20 minutes. While pie bakes, heat remaining pasta sauce, basil, and oil in a small saucepan, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Let pie stand 5 minutes to firm up and cool, then serve with extra sauce on the side.
- *Found at many supermarkets and lucini.com.
POLENTA AND BACON WITH FONTINA
Categories Cheese Pork Side Sauté Parmesan Corn Fall Hominy/Cornmeal/Masa Bon Appétit Sugar Conscious Wheat/Gluten-Free Peanut Free Tree Nut Free Soy Free No Sugar Added
Yield Makes 6 side-dish servings
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Sauté chopped bacon in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to bowl. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings. Add onion and garlic to drippings in skillet and sauté until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, corn, and bacon; bring to boil. Gradually add cornmeal, whisking constantly. Cook until polenta is soft and thick, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes. Add Fontina and Parmesan, stirring until melted, about 2 minutes. Stir in chopped parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl and serve hot.
- Available at Italian markets, natural foods stores, and some supermarkets. If unavailable, substitute 1 cup of regular yellow cornmeal, and cook mixture for about 10 minutes.
BAKED POLENTA WITH ONIONS AND BACON
Categories Microwave Onion Side Bake Quick & Easy Parmesan Bacon Cornmeal Sage Gourmet Sugar Conscious Wheat/Gluten-Free Peanut Free Tree Nut Free Soy Free No Sugar Added
Yield Serves 2
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- In a 2- to 3-quart microwave-safe casserole with a lid microwave the bacon, uncovered, at high power (100%), stirring after each minute, for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes, or until it is almost crisp. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the casserole and stir in the onions. Microwave the mixture, uncovered, at high power, stirring every 2 minutes, for 8 minutes, or until the onions are softened but not browned, and transfer the onion mixture to a bowl.
- To the casserole add the water, the broth, and the sage, whisk in the cornmeal, a little at a time, whisking until the mixture is smooth, and microwave the mixture, covered, at high power, whisking after 3 minutes, for 5 minutes, or until it is thickened and the liquid is absorbed. Stir in the butter, 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan, half the onion mixture, and salt and pepper to taste and divide the polenta mixture between two 1 1/2-cup gratin dishes or spread it in a 3-cup gratin dish.
- Top the polenta with the remaining onion mixture, spreading the onion mixture evenly, sprinkle it with the remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan, and bake it in the middle of a preheated 400°F. oven for 15 minutes, or until the Parmesan is melted.
Tips:
- For creamy polenta, use equal parts polenta and liquid (milk or water).
- To make polenta ahead of time, cook it according to package directions and let it cool completely. Then, cut it into slices and grill, bake, or fry it until heated through.
- Polenta is a great base for a variety of toppings, such as sautéed vegetables, grilled meats, or poached eggs.
- If you don't have a tube pan, you can use a 9-inch square baking dish. Just be sure to grease the pan well to prevent the polenta from sticking.
- To make the polenta crispy, cook it over medium heat for about 10 minutes per side, or until it is golden brown and crispy.
Conclusion:
Polenta is a versatile and delicious dish that can be enjoyed in many different ways. Whether you are looking for a hearty breakfast, a quick lunch, or a satisfying dinner, polenta is a great option. With its creamy texture and mild flavor, polenta is a blank canvas for a variety of toppings and sauces. So get creative and experiment with different recipes to find your favorite way to enjoy polenta.
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