Last night we tried out a recipe for creamy polenta w/ mushrooms, spinach and tomatoes, adapted from America’s Test Kitchen. Next time I’d add a little something to make it pop – more salt, more pepper, and something hot – but it worked well as a simple, healthy, easy dinner.
Ingredients for the topping:
- 2lbs crimini mushrooms, halved or quartered
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- olive oil
- 0.25oz dried porcini mushrooms minced (these are expensive so I skipped ’em, but the wild mushroom flavor definitely suffered for it)
- 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary (I would increase this next time)
- salt & black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 12oz baby spinach
- 12oz cherry tomatoes, halved
Ingredients for the polenta:
- 4 cups water
- salt & black pepper
- 1 cup coarsely ground cornmeal
- 1/2 cup parmesan + extra for topping
- 1 TBSP unsalted butter cut into small chunks
Directions for the topping:
- Put mushrooms, onion, olive oil, rosemary, and 1/4 tsp salt in a cast iron saucepan or Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, 10-12 mins.
- Uncover, increase heat, and cook until vegetables are browned, 4-6 mins.
- Stir in garlic, cook until fragrant, ~30 seconds.
- Add spinach one handful at a time and cook until wilted, 3-5 mins.
- Stir in tomatoes and cook until warmed. Salt & pepper to taste, set aside and keep warm.
Directions for the polenta:
- Bring water + 1/2 tsp salt to boil in a large, heavy saucepan. Slowly add cornmeal, whisking to prevent clumping.
- Bring cornmeal + water to a simmer, stirring constantly, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook, stirring frequently and making sure to scrap the sides of the pan, until polenta is smooth and thickish, 10-15 mins.
- Once you’ve achieved your desired texture, take it off the heat and vigorously stir in the butter and parmesan. Salt & pepper to taste.
Put some polenta in a bowl, put some veggies on top, and smother it in more parmesan and the hot sauce of choice.