Polenta with Green Beans

  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Total Time: 45 mins
  • Servings: 4

    • About This Recipe

    “This is a different and tasty side dish with an Italian flare, thanks to the cooked polenta. Coarsely-ground cornmeal is sometimes labelled “polenta”, a little shopping hint if you have trouble finding it at your supermarket. An Italian market will have it if you strike out at your regular grocery story.”

    Ingredients

  • 4cupschicken stock( using water makes this a vegetarian dish)
  • 1cupcoarsely-ground cornmeal( , finely ground won’t work as well)
  • salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cupgrated parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 lbfresh green beans, trimmed
  • 1tablespoonolive oil
  • 2clovesgarlic, thinly sliced
  • 1sweet red pepper, thinly sliced

    • Directions

  • Over medium heat in a large pot, bring stock to a boil (use water to make this a vegetarian dish).
  • Very slowly, whisk in cornmeal.
  • Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, whisking very frequently; polenta will be thick.
  • Season well with salt and pepper and, with a wooden spoon, beat in the cheese.
  • Oil an 8-inch baking dish and pour polenta in; smooth top and set aside to cool.
  • Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
  • Cut polenta into squares and place on an oiled baking sheet.
  • Bake for 15 minutes or until polenta squares are slightly browned.
  • Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to boil and add beans.
  • Cook for 2 minute; drain; rinse under cold water and set aside.
  • In a skillet over medium-high heat, heat olive oil; when hot, add garlic, red pepper and the beans.
  • Saute until peppers have softened and garlic is golden, about 5 minutes.
  • Season veggies with salt and pepper.
  • Place polenta squares on a serving platter and top with veggies; serve immediately.

    • Reviews

  • “Unbelievably good! This was a tad time consuming, but totally worth it. I used water instead of stock but didn’t “miss” any of the flavour. I more than made up for it with the seasoning, and the parmesan cheese helps otherwise bland polenta a lot. I used a green bell pepper and garlic powder. The only thing I changed was in not rinsing the beans with cold water, because I didn’t want to lose any more of its nutrients 🙂 I’ll definitely make this again… thanks Lennie! I’ll admit this turned out much, much better than I’d imagined!”

  • “Simple tasty dish. I will recommend you using stock than water; the polenta will suck up the flavour. I also saute some thinly-sliced shiitake mushroom with the veggies and serve it with salsa.”

  • “This is excellent. Just enough cheese to provide a very nice taste without being ridiculous. Looks very pretty and was great for a Mediterranean themed meal. I used a green pepper rather than a red pepper.”

  • “Please run, don’t walk, to this recipe.It’s got a clunky title and it’s anything but clunky.Living and cooking in the Veneto region of Italy, polenta is a perennial at our table.This simple combination makes the best of all its parts and is very authentic.Everything fresh (including the stock) will of course give the best result, but may I make one suggestion?Eliminate step number 7; if you’ve gone to the work of stirring the polenta to perfection, why gild the lily?This is similar to good risotto preparation: do the stove time, pat yourself on the back, have a glass of wine, thank God that Italian food exists, serve.”

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