Polenta Wedges With Spaghetti Sauce Recipes

PORCINI MATZO POLENTA WEDGES

Steps:

• Cook onion in 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add porcini and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Cool, then stir in basil and season with salt and pepper.
• Bring broth and water to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan. Gradually add matzo meal, whisking, and simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until very thick, about 2 minutes more. Stir in porcini and salt and pepper to taste. Spread polenta in an oiled 9-inch glass pie plate and let stand until firm, about 1 hour.
• Cut polenta into 12 wedges. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then cook wedges until crisp and golden brown on both sides, about 15 minutes total.

POLENTA PASTICCIATA: BAKED POLENTA LAYERED WITH LONG-COOKED SAUCES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400° and set a rack in the center.
• Put plastic wrap on fresh polenta to keep it hot and to prevent a skin from forming on top. Be sure to assemble the pasticciata within 1/2 hour, while the polenta is still warm and soft with no lumps.
• If necessary, heat the filling sauce to quite warm. If it is too dense for spreading, thin it with some water. If you're extending the filling sauce with simple tomato or marinara sauce, warm them up together.
• Butter the bottom and sides of the baking dish or skillet thoroughly. Use more butter on the bottom in particular, if you want to unmold the pasticciata.
• Put 1/4 cup besciamella in the dish or skillet and spread it around the bottom; it doesn't have to cover every bit.
• Pour in half the polenta (approximately 5 cups) and spread it evenly in the bottom of the pan. Scatter 1/3 cup or more shredded Muenster or other soft cheese all over the top, then sprinkle on 2 to 4 tablespoons of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano. Pour or ladle 2 cups of the warm sauce over the polenta and cheese, and spread it all over-use 3 cups sauce if you want a thicker layer.
• Pour on a bit more than half of the remaining polenta (about 3 cups) and spread it. Spread another 1/4 cup of besciamella on top, top with shredded soft cheese and grated hard cheese in the amounts you like. Pour in the remaining sauce and spread it evenly, reserving a cup, if you have enough and plan to unmold the pasticciata.
• For the top layer, spread all the rest of the polenta and another 1/4 cup besciamella on top of that. Sprinkle on more shredded soft cheese and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano. If you're making a thin pasticciata in a big pan, or want it to have a beautiful deep gold gratinato, use enough besciamella and cheese to really cover the top. Do not compress the cheeses, though. See do-ahead note below.
• Set the pan on a cookie sheet and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or more, until the top is deeply colored and crusted, even browned a bit on the edges. Let the pasticciata cool for a few minutes before serving. If you are serving portions from the baking pan, cut in squares like lasagna, or wedges if you've used a round skillet or pan, and lift them out with a spatula.
• To unmold the pasticiatta, let it cool for at least 10 minutes. Run a knife around the sides of the pan, cutting through crust sticking to the rim or sides. Lay a cutting board, big enough to cover it, on top of the baking pan or skillet, hold the two together (with the protection of cloths and the help of other hands if necessary), and flip them over. Rap on the upturned pan bottom-or bang on it all over-to loosen the bottom. Lift the board, and give the pan a good shake. The pasticciata will drop out soon, with sufficient encouragement. Serve it on the board, or reflip it onto a serving platter and serve with a cup or more of warm sauce heaped on the top or served on the side.
• If you want to prepare the pasticciata and bake later the same or next day, spread the last layer of polenta and coat it well with besciamella but don't sprinkle on the final layer of cheeses. Cover it lightly and leave it at room temperature, or wrap well and refrigerate overnight. Before baking, sprinkle on the cheeses and make a tent of foil (see page 203) over the baking dish, without touching the cheese. Poke a few small holes in the foil to vent steam. Set the pan on a sheet and bake for 1/2 hour at 400°, remove the foil, and continue to bake until deeply colored and crusted.
• *You can serve this with or without freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano; it will be richer with, but just as good without.
• †Good alternatives are dry-packed mozzarella, Italian Fontina, cheddar, or other cheeses of your liking.
• All of the sauces that I recommend for layering in a pasticciata are delicious just ladled on top of hot polenta. You'll need 1/3 to 1/2 cup of hot sauce for each serving of Basic Polenta (finished with freshly grated cheese) or any of the Simple Variations that follow (page 216). Put the polenta in warm serving bowls, sprinkle over more Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano-it melts best under the sauce-then spoon the sauce on top.
• Hearty sauces like mushroom ragù or savoy cabbage and bacon are particularly delicious with polenta taragna, a coarse grind of whole-grain cornmeal and buckwheat. Prepare taragna exactly as you do yellow polenta, but give it an extra 10 to 15 minutes of cooking and more water as needed.

POLENTA WEDGES WITH SPAGHETTI SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. Line cookie sheet with foil. In medium nonstick saucepan, combine cornmeal and water beat with wire whisk until well blended. Add broth bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook 10 to 15 minutes, stirring constantly with wire whisk, until mixture is very thick and begins to pull away from sides of pan while stirring.2. Remove from heat. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan cheese for topping stir remaining Parmesan cheese, parsley and pimientos into cornmeal mixture. Spread evenly in ungreased 9-inch round cake pan. Cover refrigerate 10 minutes or until set.3. Meanwhile, heat spaghetti sauce in small saucepan cover to keep warm.4. Turn polenta out onto foil-lined cookie sheet, tapping bottom of pan to release. Cut into 6 wedges separate slightly. Brush tops with oil sprinkle with reserved tablespoon of Parmesan cheese.5. Broil 4 to 6 inches from heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. To serve, spoon spaghetti sauce over polenta wedges.Nutrition Information Per Serving: Serving Size: 1/6 of Recipe * Calories: 150 * Calories from Fat: 45 * % Daily Value: Total Fat: 5 g 8% * Saturated Fat: 1 g 5% * Cholesterol: 4 mg 1% * Sodium: 540 mg 23% * Total Carbohydrate: 20 g 7% * Dietary Fiber: 2 g 8% * Sugars: 2 g * Protein: 5 g * Vitamin A: 15% * Vitamin C: 15% * Calcium: 8% * Iron: 8% * Dietary Exchanges: 1 1/2 Starch, 1/2 Fat or 1 1/2 Carbohydrate, 1/2 Fat