Versatile Layered Polenta Recipes

LAYERED POLENTA CASSEROLE RECIPE

Steps:

• For the Polenta, cook the Polenta, water, milk, butter, salt, and pepper together. Keep on low heat and stir continuously for about 5 minutes.
• Keep your attention towards the Polenta, cause it can burn on really quickly and cooks up super fast. Remove it from the heat once it starts to boil up.
• Spread half amount of the polenta into a baking dish to create the first layer.
• For the white sauce, heat up a saucepan with the butter.
• Continue adding in the White flour. Keep on stirring with a whisk on slow heat.
• Then pour in the milk. Stir well, season and keep on whisking the sauce till it gets thick by itself. Remove from the heat and keep aside.
• Preheat your oven to 350 Celsius/ 180 Fahrenheit.
• Mix the Tomato Sauce with the olives, basil, salt, and black pepper
• Spread the mixed tomato sauce over the polenta layer
• Then add the remaining polenta to form the layer over the tomato paste.
• Then spread the white sauce over the polenta to create a creamy layer.
• At last spread the Parmesan Cheese over the white sauce.
• Bake the casserole dish for about 15 minutes at 350 Fahrenheit/180 Celsius.

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.

INSTANT POT POLENTA

Steps:

• Method One - Directly Cook Polenta in Instant Pot: Add ingredients in Instant Pot in the following order. Add 1 tsp (7g) fine salt, 4 cups (1L) to 4½ cups (1.125L) unsalted chicken stock in Instant Pot. Add in 1 cup (195g) coarsely ground polenta. Do NOT Mix!With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position. Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 10 minutes, then Natural Release for 15 minutes. Remove the lid carefully.*Pro Tip: To avoid the "Burn" Error, it's best to use Method 2. You don't have to worry about anything sticking to the bottom of the pot.
• Method Two - Pot in Pot Polenta: Add 2 cups (500ml) water, a trivet in the larger Instant Pot inner pot. Add ingredients to your smaller stainless steel pot in the following order: add in 1 tsp (7g) fine salt, 1 cup (195g) coarsely ground polenta. Add in 4 cups (1L) to 4½ cups (1.125L) unsalted chicken stock. Place the smaller pot on the trivet. *Pro Tip: If you don't have a low-profile trivet, place the smaller pot directly in the water. With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position. Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 15 minutes, then Natural Release for 15 minutes. Remove the lid carefully.
• Add Butter & Season: The polenta will look a bit watery at first. Add in 2.5 tbsp (36g) unsalted butter, then mix until desired consistency with a whisk. Optionally, mix in ½ cup to 1 cup (32g - 64g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
• Season & Serve: Taste and season polenta with more salt if necessary. For reference, we added 1 to 2 small pinches of salt. Serve this soft & creamy polenta immediately with your favorite main dishes, sauces, or veggies.

VERSATILE LAYERED POLENTA

Steps:

• For the Polenta:.
• Boil the milk and water together.
• Whisk in the cornmeal and salt. Turn down the heat and stir constantly until the polenta is suspended in the water and no longer settles to the bottom of the pot. It's done in about 15 minutes (still stirring often), but is supposedly even better if you cook it for about an hour - I wouldn't know, I'm always too impatient :).
• Take of the stove and stir in the butter or olive oil and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.
• For the Lasagna:.
• In a 9x9 baking dish, ladle in 1/3 of the polenta. Spread 1 cup tomato sauce over top of the polenta. Arrange half of the mozzarella on top of that and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of parmesan.
• Ladle over half of the remaining polenta (1/3 of the original amount) and spread the left-over sauce and cheeses on top.
• Ladle over the last of the polenta and allow the lasagna to sit for about 30 minutes before baking to let the polenta set.
• Bake in a 350 degree oven until hot and bubbling, about 30 minutes.