Broiled Polenta With Mushrooms and Cheese

Ms*Bindy's Note:

I love mushrooms and was really drawn to this recipe. I haven't tried it yet. It comes from the cookbook Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home, and I am posting it for the Zaar World Tour.

• Total Time: 30 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 5 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1/2 cup boiling water (optional)
• 1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms, in pieces (optional)

Polenta

• 3 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup cornmeal

Mushroom Mixture

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, diced (use 2 cups if you omit the porcini)
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon dry white wine
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Cheese Toppings

• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup smoked cheddar cheese or 1/2 cup mild provolone cheese, shredded
• ground black pepper

Directions:

1. If you use the porcini mushrooms, pleace them in a bowl, cover with the boiling water, and set aside for about 10 minutes.
2. In a saucepan, bring the 3 cups water and salt to a rapid boil.
3. Add the cornmeal in a thin, steady stream, whisking to prevent lumps.
4. Lower the heat to simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking until the polenta thickens.
5. While the polenta cooks, strain the porcini mushrooms and rinse them.
6. Heat the oil in a skillet and saute the 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, garlic, and porcini on medium heat until the oil is absorbed, stirring occasionally.
7. Stir in the wine and add salt.
8. Simmer gently for another minute or two.
9. Preheat the broiler.
10. Spread the polenta in and oiled pie plate or casserole dish.
11. Sprinkle the mozzarella on the polenta.
12. Spoon the sauteed mushrooms over the mozzarella and finish with a layer of the smoked cheddar and/or provolone.
13. Add pepper to taste.
14. Broil for 3-5 minutes until cheese is golden brown, and serve bubbling hot.

Reviews

[Aimee67]

This is a great recipe! I did make some slight modifications. I substituted low sodium chicken broth for the water and added some shredded cheddar to the polenta (this was good enough to eat by itself!). I also used dry sherry instead instead of wine with the mushrooms and added a splash of worcestershire sauce because I feel it just goes so well with mushrooms. This resulted in an excellent side dish that paired very nicely with the bourbon marinated turkey tips that I grilled up. Thanks for sharing!

[Jaudon]

Fabulous! This was easy to put together (even for my first attempt at making polenta), and turned out great! The addition of white wine to the mushrooms was perfect - don't skip that! I added some fresh basil to the mushrooms, and added about 1T of parmesan, but otherwise made according to directions. This recipe is a keeper!

[adopt a greyhound]

Very good side dish for chicken. I made this ahead and then put under the broiler at the last moment. I should have done the chicken first and while it was resting made the polenta. I think it would have been better. Good flavors and loved the smoked cheese in it.