Eggplant and Mushroom Polenta Bake, by Cheryl

On my quest to find easy and healthy weeknight meals I came across this recipe. This was anything but easy! Let me rephrase that. It was technically easy, meaning that all of the steps were easy to accomplish, but it just took an effing long time! Between the chopping, all of the steps, and ingredients it took two hours to prepare. If I'm going to prepare something that takes two hours of my time (especially on a weeknight) the main ingredient better have had parents when it was alive. To boot, the dish was just so-so. I thought it was a little flat tasting and could use some more zing to it. It was reasonably good, but in my opinion it wasn't worth the effort. The recipe is from here. Yum?

Ingredients (filling):

olive oil
1.5 pounds Japanese eggplant, largely diced
1 pound cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed and mushrooms quartered
1/3 cup dry red wine
1/2 large yellow onion, diced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp red pepper flakes
kosher salt
5 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup green olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 cup water
ground pepper

Polenta ingredients:

3 cups water, plus more as needed,
2 cups whole milk
2 tsp kosher salt
1.5 cups polenta
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1.5 cups shredded fontina cheese

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 350 and arrange a rack in the middle. Place a large, well seasoned or enameled cast iron skillet in the oven while it's heating.

2) Once the oven is heated, drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil in the hot skillet and let it heat up for 1-2 minutes. Add the eggplant to the skillet and arrange it in an even layer. Roast until tender and starting to brown, stirring halfway through, about 25 minutes. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and place on the stovetop. Using a spoon, transfer the eggplant to a bowl and set aside.

3) Add 1 tbsp olive oil to the skillet and place over high heat until shimmering. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring rarely, until browned, about 8 minutes. Add the wine, stir to combine, and cook until the liquid has completely evaporated. Reduce the heat to medium low and using a spoon, transfer the mushrooms to the eggplant bowl.

4) Add 1 tbsp olive oil to the skillet and heat. Add the onion, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, about 1 minute.

5) Add the olives and reserved eggplant and mushrooms, along with any accumulated juices in the bowl and stir to combine. Add the tomatoes and water, season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, being making the polenta. (Remove mixture from heat when done, season with salt and pepper, and keep warm until polenta is ready).

6) POLENTA: Place the measured water, milk, and salt in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, and whisking constantly, slowly pour the polenta in a thin, steady stream until all of it is incorporated and there are no lumps.

7) Cook, whisking or stirring with a spoon every few minutes, until the polenta pulls away from the sides of the pan and the grains have softened, about 20 minutes. Add water if it gets too thick. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and set aside. Heat the oven to broil.

8) Pour the polenta over the eggplant and mushroom mixture and spread it into a smooth even layer. Evenly sprinkle the fontina onto the polenta. Place the skillet in the oven and broil until the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 4 minutes. Remove from the oven to a wire rack and let sit for 5 minutes.

Ratatouille with Goat Cheese Polenta, by Diane

This week I made an awesome dinner- filling, delicious, and full of veggies! Served with a side of grilled chicken seasoned with italian herbs, it was the perfect pairing. Ratatouille is a french dish but this recipe had an italian flair. It consists of layered summer veggies with lots of fresh herbs, and looks very similar to a lasagna at the end:

Using fresh tomato sauce is key for this recipe! As for the polenta, it comes together quickly and pairs perfectly with the sauce and veggies. My only suggestion is to increase the cooking time on the ratatouille to around an hour, unless you like your veggies with a little crunch (I did, family did not).

Recipe is from: http://skinnyms.com/ratatouille-with-goat-cheese-polenta/

Ingredients

Ratatouille:

1 medium eggplant
1 medium zucchini
1 medium summer squash
1 medium red bell pepper
3 cups prepared marinara sauce
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Goat Cheese Polenta:

3 cups water or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups medium grind cornmeal
1/4 cup low fat milk
1 teaspoon butter
4 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled
Fresh basil leaves, slivered, for garnish


Directions:

Make the Ratatouille: 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Slice all the vegetables as thin as possible using either a sharp knife or mandolin slicer, doing your best to slice them as uniformly as possible. Layer them in a 9x9 casserole dish one vegetable at a time, seasoning with salt and fresh ground pepper between each layer, until you run out of vegetables.

3. Pour the marinara sauce overtop of the veggies, covering well, and drizzle with the extra virgin olive oil. 

4. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes.

About 10 minutes before the ratatouille is done, make the polenta:

1. Put the water, garlic, and salt in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Slowly add the cornmeal to the pot, turn down the heat to medium low, and stir with a whisk until liquid is absorbed and no clumps remain. 

2. Stir continuously for about 5 minutes and then add the milk, butter, and half of the goat cheese. Stir until well combined and turn off the heat.

3. To serve, top the polenta with the baked vegetables, and top with a sprinkling of goat cheese crumbles and a few slivers of fresh basil. 

Poached Eggs with Polenta, Kale, and Sundried Tomato Sauce, by Diane

This is a recipe that I recently had at a cool DC brunch spot, and it was so healthy and delicious I knew I had to recreate it. You can change it up in a variety of ways, like frying the polenta into cakes and/or adding parmesan or any other cheese (I just made a quick polenta in this version). This recipe was for 2 (the polenta made extra though and could have been for 4). Very filling and great for weekend brunch!


Ingredients:
4 1/2-5 cups water
Sea salt
1 cup yellow corn meal
1-2 tbsp EVOO
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 large handfuls kale
1 tsp red chili flakes
Pepper
 Sundried marinara sauce (if you can't find any just make your own by sauteing sundried tomatoes and adding them in!)
4 eggs


Directions:

1. Bring 3 cups of water and some sea salt to a boil. Combine corn meal, 1 tsp salt, and 1 cup water and slowly pour into the boiling water, stirring constantly until thick. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered for 5 minutes.

2. While the polenta is cooking, heat a large saucepan on medium high and add EVOO and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes, then add kale, red pepper, salt and pepper. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally so the garlic doesn't burn. Add 1/2 cup water and cover, stirring occasionally until the water cooks out. Kale should be slightly wilted but still green when finished. If it is not the desired texture, add 1/2 cup more water and repeat.

3. Heat marinara on the stove/microwave until hot.

4. Poach (or fry) eggs keeping the yolks runny.

5. Assemble: polenta, kale, eggs, salt/pepper, marinara. Enjoy!