Baked Polenta With Roasted Vegetables Recipes

ROASTED POLENTA WITH GARDEN VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Make the Polenta: Bring the chicken stock, butter, pepper, and salt to a boil in a heavy-bottomed pot. While whisking the hot stock in a quick circular motion, "rain" in the polenta by letting it stream through your fingers. (This will prevent lumping.)
• Reduce the polenta to a gentle simmer; it must be stirred constantly for 25 to 35 minutes to prevent lumps or scorching. Be very careful when stirring, the mixture is very hot (think lava) and can burn you if it boils and sputters. If it begins to boil cover the pot and reduce the heat until boiling stops!
• The polenta is cooked when it is no longer grainy and has become creamy. (My grandmother says good polenta takes 30 minutes, great polenta takes 1 hour).
• Stir in the Parmesan and basil and pour onto a buttered sheet pan to cool. When cool, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Cut the polenta into any shape you desire that's structurally sound. In other words, a shape that won't fall apart on the grill easily, or be difficult to remove from the sheet pan after roasting. Squares, triangles, stars etc.
• Make the Marinade and Vegetables: Whisk together the vinegar and garlic. While whisking, drizzle in the oil to make a smooth dressing. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss the vegetables with the marinade.
• When ready to serve, preheat an outdoor grill or indoor grill pan.
• Brush the polenta lightly on both sides with olive oil and grill, turning once, until the edges are brown and crispy.
• At the same time grill the vegetables until they are tender but still firm.
• Pile the vegetables on top of the polenta, then stand back and wait for the applause!

ROASTED ROOT VEGETABLES WITH POLENTA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a sheet pan or a baking dish with parchment or foil. Toss vegetables with the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Add fresh herbs if using. Spread vegetables in an even layer.
• Combine polenta, water, and salt in a 2-quart baking dish and stir together. Place polenta and vegetables in the oven. If you can't fit both pans on the same (middle) rack, place vegetables on a lower rack. Roast vegetables for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or until soft and beginning to caramelize. Remove from the oven.
• If serving this with marinara sauce, make the sauce while the vegetables and polenta are in the oven.
• Continue to bake the polenta until it has been in the oven for 40 to 45 minutes and has absorbed the water. Remove from oven and stir in butter. Use a fork or a spatula to stir the polenta well, and return to oven for 5 to 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and stir again. Carefully taste a little bit of the polenta; if it is not completely soft, return to the oven for 5 to 10 more minutes.
• Remove polenta from oven and stir in 1/3 cup grated Parmesan, if using. Immediately spoon polenta onto plates and make a depression in the middle. Ladle on some marinara sauce and top with a generous spoonful of roasted vegetables. Sprinkle on remaining Parmesan and serve.

OVEN-ROASTED POLENTA

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 3-qt. nonstick ovenproof skillet; pour in the cornmeal, water, milk (if using), butter, and salt and stir with a fork until blended. The mixture will separate and take more than half the cooking time to come together. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes. Stir the polenta, taste, add salt if needed, and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the polenta rest in the pan for 5 minutes before pouring it into a buttered bowl to scoop out and serve or onto a wooden board or pizza peel to slice into wedges.

BAKED POLENTA AND ROASTED VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• POLENTA:.
• cut up the polenta and put it in pot on the stove with the milk (or water) over medium to re-constitute into mush. The polenta should return to a mush-like consistency- you can use a potato masher to help it. Mix in a 1/2 cup of parmesan. Spread the polenta on a buttered 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
• VEGGIES:.
• Salt the eggplant on both sides and let sit for 20 minutes on paper towels, then wipe the salt off and cube the eggplant.
• Put the zucchini, mushrooms, onion and eggplant in a large bowl and mix with salt, pepper, oregano and olive oil.
• Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until the veggies are al dente.
• FINISHING.
• Drizzle the spaghetti sauce on top of the polenta.
• Spread the roasted veggies on top of the drizzled polenta.
• Sprinkle the parmesan and mozzarella on top of the veggies.
• Place under the broiler to melt the cheese- serve!

VEGAN POLENTA WITH BALSAMIC ROASTED VEGETABLES AND CHICKPEAS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375F. Strain, rinse, and dry the chickpeas completely.
• Add the chopped vegetables and chickpeas to a baking pan.
• Then, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, oil, maple syrup, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
• Pour the balsamic marinade on top of the tray of veggies & chickpeas and mix together until evenly coated.
• Then, add the tray to the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the chickpeas and beginning to crisp and the veggies are caramelized. Make sure to remove the tray and stir the veggies & chickpeas at the 15 minute mark so they bake evenly.
• While the veggies & chickpeas are roasting, make the vegan polenta.
• Add 3 cups broth (or water) and 1/2 tsp salt to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and gradually add in the polenta 1/4 cup at a time. For the best results, stream the polenta in gradually and stir continuously while adding it to the pot.
• Cook the polenta uncovered for 1-2 minutes, stirring consistently. Then, cover the saucepan and cook another 5-10 minutes(*or until cooked depending on the package instructions). If the polenta gets too thick before it is done cooking, add in a few Tbsp of veggie broth to help it thin out.
• Remove the cooked polenta from the heat and mix in the vegan butter, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, Italian spices, salt, & pepper.
• Add the cooked polenta to 3-4 bowls. Top with the roasted veggies & chickpeas and serve. If desired, add on an extra drizzle of balsamic vinegar to the finished dish. Enjoy!

ROASTED GARLIC POLENTA CAKES

Steps:

• Line a casserole dish with plastic wrap and set aside.
• 2. Preheat a large heavy bottom pot on medium-low heat. Add the butter, onion and garlic and sauté until nicely browned, stirring occasionally.
• Once brown, add the milk and water and turn the heat up to bring to a boil. Keep a close eye on the pot as milk loves to boil over and make a huge mess.
• Just as the milk reaches a boil, reduce heat to medium-low again and using a whisk, slowly stir in the corn meal. Make sure the corn meal is evenly distributed and there is no clumping.
• Season with salt, cumin and paprika and then cook for about 15 minutes. Make sure to give a good stir with a wooden spoon every 5 minutes or so and check that its not burning on the bottom.
• Once the polenta is soft and cooked, its time to stir in the parmesan cheese. Go with fresh grated Parmesano Reggiano if you can.
• Now pour the warm polenta into the plastic lined casserole dish and spread out and compact in an even layer with a wet spatula (so it does not stick) and place in the fridge to cool.
• After 2 hours or so, you can remove the polenta from the dish by lifting the plastic wrap. Place on a cutting board and cut into desired shape. Square, rectangle, circle with a cookie cutter, half moon etc.
• Fry cakes until warm and browned with a little butter in a preheated fry pan on medium heat. Serve as an appy or as part of dinner.

BAKED POLENTA WITH VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a small skillet, and sauté the onion for a few minutes; then add the tomato and cook another 2 minutes. Mix in the additional cooked vegetables, salt lightly, and remove from the heat. Put the polenta in a smallish, rather shallow baking dish, and stir in the warm water and remaining olive oil. (Don't forget that if you want leftovers, add the additional amount of polenta and water.) Add the sautéed vegetables, sprinkle on the rest of the salt, and stir everything together. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 25 minutes, then sprinkle Parmesan on top (I put the third tablespoon over the portion I am going to eat right away). Bake another 5 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed. If I've made the larger amount of polenta, I scoop out the excess and put it aside, eating up all the vegetables with my polenta the first time around.
• You can vary your cooked-vegetable additions to your heart's content-chopped asparagus spears or fiddleheads in spring, perhaps, quartered artichoke hearts, chunks of small zucchini, broccoli florets, and anything else the garden offers in summer. If you don't have roasted red pepper on hand, use about a quarter of a fresh bell pepper, any color, but sauté it first with the onion. If you want a more substantial dish, add some slivers of ham or slices of a cooked spicy sausage. Plan to eat all of these embellishments with your first serving, saving the pure polenta for later.
• Gather the remaining polenta in your hand, and gently shape it into an oval or round piece; if you have too much to handle in one piece, make two. Preheat your broiler. Brush the polenta lightly with olive oil, and set it on the broiler tray or on a baking sheet. Broil the polenta cake until browned and crusty on the top. If you want it doubly crisp, try turning it over and browning the other side. To fry it, film generously with oil a skillet large enough to hold the polenta. Heat the pan, and gently slip in the polenta cake. Fry until browned, then turn and do the other side. Serve with some juicy meat or poultry. Or try it with butter and warm maple syrup for breakfast.