Polenta with White Beans, Braised Kale, and Roasted Pears

If you follow this blog at all you know that I usually don't mess around with fussy presentations or preparations. But, you also know that I like to watch Top Chef. The last episode featured Natalie Portman, a vegetarian, but I found the dishes presented to be pretty disappointing so I thought I would take a try at something more fancy. The dish started with wondering about how roasted pears would taste . . . .

INGREDIENTS
Makes 10
Roasted Pears
- 6 Bartlett pears, cored, diced
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Polenta
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup plain soy milk
- 1 cup polenta
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp parsley
- salt and pepper to taste

White Beans
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 leek, white and light green section, thinly sliced
- white wine
- 1 tomato, small dice
- 1 19oz can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- salt and pepper to taste

Braised Kale
- 6 large kale leaves
- white wine
- dash of salt

METHOD
1. Pears: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss diced pears in oil and vinegar and spread out on a baling sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast for 30 mins, turning pears regularly. Keep warm.
2. Polenta: Grease 10 large muffin tins. Bring water and milk to boiling. Slowly whisk in polenta and reduce heat to med-lo, stirring frequently to keep from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 15-20 mins, until soft and thick. Add spices and season to taste, then transfer into the muffin tins. Let cool, remove from tins, then keep warm.
3. Beans: While polenta is cooking, make the beans. Heat oil over medium heat in a frying pan. Fry leeks for 2-3 mins, until staring to go golden, then add a big splash of wine. Let cook dry, then repeat until leeks are softened (about 5 mins). Add tomatoes and another splash of wine and let reduce a bit. Add beans and a last splash of wine, then let cook for 5-7 mins until tomatoes have turned into a thick sauce. Season and keep warm.
4. Kale: Remove tough stalks from kale leaves, stack leaves, then roll up. Thinly slices rolled leaves. Heat a frying pan over med hi heat. Add kale, a generous splash of wine, and a dash of salt. Let cook for a min or two, until kale is soft but still bright green.
5. Place polenta on a plate, then top with beans, then kale, then pears.

Creamy Red Pepper Polenta with Roasted Mushrooms

The weather around here, in a word, has been crappy. And you can only eat so much soup before you get a hankering for something different but still warm and comforting. Creamy polenta fills the belly and has a hearty texture that satisfies. The dish is really easy to make, and it's amazing the depth of flavour you can get by chucking a few extra things into a blender.

INGREDIENTS
- 4 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- freshly ground pepper
- 3 cups water
- 1 large red pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
- 1 leek, white and light green section, sliced
- 1/2 cup plain soy milk, or creamer (more, if needed)
- 1 cup polenta
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp sage
- salt and pepper to taste
- parsley, fresh or dried

INGREDIENTS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
1. Toss sliced mushrooms and garlic in olive oil. Spread out on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 mins, turning a few times to keep from burning. Remove from oven, let cool, then peel and mince garlic.
2. While mushrooms roast, place water, red pepper, and leeks in food processor or blender and blend until relatively smooth. Bring to bubbling in a sauce pan, then whisk in polenta. Lower heat and stir in soy milk/creamer. Loosely cover and cook for about 15-20 mins, until thick and creamy and soft. Stir regularly to keep from cooking to the bottom, and add more soy milk if it gets too thick. Stir in spices and minced garlic, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Pour polenta into a large serving dish, then place mushrooms in the centre. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Creamy Soft Polenta

This is a hearty side to accompany whatever Italian entree you might be serving. I made a seitan marsala and a simple salad and this polenta was a great addition to the meal. Play around with the herbs to suit your entree, and be sure not to overcook it into a dense lump.

INGREDIENTS

Serve 4-6 as a side

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 4 large cloves garlic, chopped

- 4 cups vegetable broth

- 1 cup polenta

- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast

- 1 tsp dried herbs (sage, thyme, basil, whatever suits you)

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/4 cup coconut cream (top of the can of an unshaken can of coconut milk), or soy creamer

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute garlic for a few mins, until lightly golden.

2 Add vegetable broth and increase heat to hi. Bring water to boiling then add polenta slowly, stirring all the time. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 15-20 mins, stirring regularly so it does not stick. It should be like thick porridge.

3. Season to taste with herbs and salt and pepper.

4. Remove from heat and stir in coconut cream. Serve.

Cheesy Polenta Cups with Shredded Zucchini

We scored several bags of discount tomatoes at the grocery store, so it was homemade pasta sauce tonight with tempeh meatballs. I made these polenta cups (with cornmeal because it's easier) to try to get the kids to eat some zucchini without so much whining. They didn't whine, but they didn't jump up and down either. I really liked them and they would make a nice appetizer.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 cup water

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/2 cup cornmeal

- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1 small zucchini, finely grated

- 1/2 cup spaghetti sauce (or more)

- grated vegan cheese (alternate topping: Italian bread crumbs)

Variation: top zucchini with pesto

METHOD

1. Bring water and salt to boiling in a sauce pan. Whisk in cornmeal and keep whisking until thick. Remove from heat and whisk in nutritional yeast and olive oil.

2. Spoon polenta into 6 muffin tins. Allow to cool slightly, then, working quickly, press into a shell shape. Wet your fingers of polenta is sticky. Place muffin tin in the fridge to cool.

3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Grate zucchini. Squeeze out excess water with your hands. Remove polenta from fridge, remove from muffin tin, and place on a non stick cookie sheet. Gently press 1/6 of the zucchini into each cup and top with a generous tbsp of spaghetti sauce. Top all that with some cheese.

4. Bake for 10-12 mins, until cheese is melted and polenta is slightly crispy.

NOTE: you need to shape the polenta before it cools. Wetting your fingers can help if polenta is sticky, or is cooling quickly. If you want to make more than 6 cups, I would suggest making two batches of polenta rather than trying to for 12 cups at once.

Polenta Lasagna with Roasted Vegetables

I know it says polenta in the title, but I actually just used cornmeal. While I like the heartier texture of polenta, I never did like having to cook it for 20 minutes. Cornmeal cooks in a jiffy and has pretty much the same taste. Tomatoes and polenta go very well together, and roasting the other veggies adds a wonderfully smoky and sweet flavour to the whole dish.

INGREDIENTS

- 6 cups water

- 3 cups cornmeal

- 1-2 tsp salt

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1 tsp basil

- 1 tsp parsley

- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast

- 1/4 cup margarine

- 6 cloves garlic, roasted, chopped

- 2 cups frozen corn

- 12 cherry tomatoes, halved

- 8 oz thickly sliced mushrooms

- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

- 1/2 jar pasta sauce, plus 1/2 cup

- 1 yellow pepper, roasted, sliced

- 1 red pepper, roasted, sliced

- olive oil for brushing

- vegan mozzarella cheese

METHOD:

1. Bring water to boiling in a large pot. Add salt and spices to the water, then whisk in cornmeal. When cornmeal has thickened, remove from heat and mix in margarine and nutritional yeast with a spoon. Working quickly, spread cornmeal mixture as thinly as possible on 2 cookie sheets (or one large sheet). Set aside to cool. When cool, slice into 9 strips.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

2. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. When hot, dry roast corn until it beings to lightly brown. Add in cherry tomatoes and mushroom, stirring constantly, until mushrooms begin to brown and soften. If veggies are sticking, add a few tbsp of water. Add in tomatoes and pasta sauce and bring to bubbling. Add in roasted pepper slices.

3. Spread extra 1/2 cup of pasta sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Place 3 strips of polenta over the sauce, and top with 1/2 of the tomato mixture. Repeat with 3 more strips and the other half of the sauce. Top with 3 more polenta strips, and brush lightly with olive oil. Top with vegan cheese.

4. Bake for 35-45 mins, or until bubbling and the cheese has melted.

Grilled Polenta with Fire-Roasted Tomatoes and Garlic

"Fire-roasted." Heh. That is my fancy word for throwing stuff on the BBQ. Several years ago my Dad bought us a very nice BBQ, and when we became vegan he worried it would fall into disuse. Never! I think vegans need to rediscover the grill and reclaim it as their own.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 cup polenta (or yellow cornmeal)

- 3 cups water (2 cups if using cornmeal)

- 1 tsp sea salt

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1/2 tsp each parsley and sage

- 8 roma tomatoes

- 8 unpeeled garlic cloves

- oil

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

METHOD

For the polenta:

1. Bring water and salt to a boil. Slowly whisk in polenta to keep it from clumping. Continue to stir frequently with a wooden spoon for about 30 mins (5 if using cornmeal) until polenta is soft. When cooked, stir in dried herbs.

2. Spread into a lightly oiled 8x8 baking pan and refrigerate until cool.

3. Once cooled, slice into 6 pieces and brush liberally with oil.

On the Grill:

1. Heat BBQ to med-high. (more on the high side than the medium)

2. Wrap garlic cloves in foil. Brush tomatoes with oil. Place both on grill. Keep turning tomatoes and garlic to keep from charring (I usually put the garlic on the upper rack). Roast tomatoes for about 15 mins, until skins split and tomatoes are soft. You want them to be blackened for some taste, but you don't want to burn them.

3. Meanwhile, place polenta slices on oiled grill. Grill about 5-8 mins per side until polenta is crispy on the outside.

4. Remove tomatoes from grill and roughly chop. Peel garlic and roughly chop.

5. Stack polenta on serving dish as pictured, top with tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil if you want. Sprinkle chopped garlic over top of tomatoes and top with basil. Serve.