Polenta With Green Beans Recipes

CREAMY POLENTA WITH BRAISED GREENS AND POACHED EGGS

Steps:

• Make the chile oil: Combine the chopped chiles, olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan over low heat and cook 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate up to 1 week. (You will have about 1 1/4 cups chile oil.)
• Cook the polenta: Bring 3 cups cold water, the milk, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Gradually whisk in the polenta; whisk constantly until the mixture is smooth and begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring often, until tender and thickened but still creamy, about 30 minutes. Add more hot water as needed if the mixture seems too dry. Stir in the butter and cheese.
• Meanwhile, make the braised greens: Heat the olive oil in a large high-sided saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the greens, season with salt and pepper and toss. Reduce the heat to medium, stir in 1 cup water, cover and cook until wilted and soft, about 20 minutes. Remove the lid during the last 5 minutes to cook off any additional liquid. Stir in the red wine vinegar just before serving.
• Poach the eggs: Heat 3 cups water with the white vinegar until simmering in a large high-sided frying pan. Break each egg into a cup, then gently add to the water. Poach until the yolks are nearly set, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the eggs from the pan with a slotted spoon to drain the liquid and place on a plate. Season with salt and pepper.
• To serve, spoon some of the polenta into bowls, top with some of the greens and a poached egg per bowl. Drizzle with the chile oil and garnish with the chopped parsley.

BEANS AND GREENS POLENTA BAKE

Steps:

• Pour warm polenta into a large ovenproof skillet or a ceramic baking dish or metal baking pan and spread into an even layer (ideally about 1" thick). Let cool, then cover and chill at least 1 hour and up to 1 week.
• Preheat oven to 500°F. Heat garlic and ¼ cup oil in a large skillet over medium, stirring occasionally, until garlic is fragrant and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add beans and red pepper flakes (if using), then, working in batches, add kale, letting it wilt slightly after each addition before adding more, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and evenly darkened in color, about 3 minutes. Stir in vinegar and salt and cook, still stirring occasionally, until liquid evaporates, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in ¼ cup Parmesan.
• Scrape kale mixture over prepared polenta and spread into an even layer. Drizzle with more oil and sprinkle with more Parmesan.
• Transfer skillet to oven and bake until polenta is warmed through and topping is lightly crisped and browned, 8-10 minutes.

POLENTA WITH GREEN BEANS, MUSHROOMS, PEAS, AND LEEKS

Steps:

• Blanch green beans 1 minute in boiling water. Add peas and cook until both beans and peas are crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl of ice water to cool. Drain. Cut beans on diagonal into 1-inch pieces. Set beans and peas aside.
• Bring milk and broth to boil in large saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to low. Cook until polenta is very thick, whisking almost constantly, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, combine leeks and vermouth in medium saucepan. Boil over medium-high heat until reduced to 1/3 cup, 8 minutes. Remove from heat. Gradually whisk in butter, allowing each addition to melt before adding next. Add cream and whisk over very low heat to blend. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until almost tender, 5 minutes. Stir in shallots, 1 tablespoon parsley, and thyme. Sauté until mushrooms are very tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans and peas, tossing to coat.
• Rewarm polenta and spoon into large shallow bowl. Top with green bean mixture and remaining 1 tablespoon parsley. Rewarm leeks over low heat, whisking constantly; spoon evenly over polenta.
• Sold at some supermarkets and at natural foods stores and Italian markets. If unavailable, substitute an equal amount of regular yellow cornmeal and cook about half as long.

MAKE-AHEAD POLENTA WITH GREEN ONIONS AND RICOTTA

Steps:

• Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) broiler-proof baking dish with cooking spray. (Do not use a glass baking dish if you want to broil the ricotta topping; glass baking dishes can break under the broiler.)
• In 4-quart Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add green onions; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add milk, water and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt; heat to boiling, stirring occasionally.
• Still over medium heat, slowly add cornmeal, stirring constantly with whisk until mixture thickens, 5 to 10 minutes. (If mixture starts to bubble and spatter, reduce heat to medium-low.) Remove from heat. Stir in pepper, Parmesan cheese and half of the chives. If desired, taste and adjust seasonings.
• Pour into baking dish; spread evenly. Cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Cover loosely with foil; refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
• For ricotta topping, in medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, remaining half of the chives and the eggs. Cover; refrigerate until ready to use. (This can also be made a day ahead or the day of.)
• Heat oven to 400°F. Spread ricotta topping evenly over top of polenta.
• Bake about 40 minutes or until thoroughly heated. (If using a broiler-proof dish and you'd like to brown the top, you can set it under the broiler for a few minutes.) Cool slightly before serving.

POLENTA OR GRITS WITH BEANS AND CHARD

Steps:

• Chop 1/2 of the onion and set aside. To cook dried beans, transfer with their soaking water to a heavy pot. If beans are not covered by 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water, add more water as necessary. Over medium-high heat, bring to a gentle boil and skim away foam. Add unchopped halved onion, crushed garlic cloves and bouquet garni, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 1 hour. Using tongs, removed halved onion and whole garlic cloves.
• Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium skillet and add chopped onion and carrot. Cook, stirring, until beginning to soften, about 3 minutes, and add chard stems, garlic and pepper flakes. Continue to cook for another couple of minutes, until onion and chard stems are soft. Stir vegetable mixture into beans. Add tomato paste and salt to taste (I use at least 1 1/2 teaspoons), cover and continue to simmer very gently for 1 hour or until beans are tender all the way through and their texture is plush and velvety. Remove and discard bouquet garni.
• Add chard greens (depending on the size of your pot you may have to add a portion at a time, cover for a minute until the first portion wilts, then add the next portion and so on until all of the greens have been added) and continue to simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, until greens are tender but still have some color and life in them. Taste bean broth; it should taste rich, delicious, a little spicy. Add salt as necessary. Keep warm.
• Meanwhile, toward the end of the cooking time for the beans, cook polenta; or wait until beans are done and start polenta or grits. When done, spoon into wide soup bowls and press down in the middle with the back of a spoon. Spoon beans and greens with broth over polenta or grits. Top with a little Parmesan or feta and serve.

GRILLED POLENTA BITES WITH BLACK BEAN SALSA

Steps:

• Combine black beans, tomato, onion, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice, and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Stir to combine. Set aside.
• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Lay polenta rounds on a clean work surface and brush the tops with olive oil. Flip the rounds over and brush the other side with olive oil. Lightly season one side.
• Grill polenta rounds for 5 minutes. Using a spatula, flip them over and grill for 5 minutes longer. Top with black bean salsa just before serving.

ROASTED PORK WITH CARROT GLAZE, POLENTA AND GREEN BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wrap the shallots in aluminum foil and roast for 30 minutes. Remove from oven. Press the insides of the shallots out of the skin, and use a fork to mash with the mustard. Rub pork loins with the mustard-shallot mixture and season on all sides with salt and pepper. Place in a roasting pan and roast, turning every 5 minutes, for 20 minutes.
• Blanch the beans, drain and cool under cold water. Prepare the instant polenta according to the directions on the box. Two minutes before it is through cooking, remove the polenta from the heat. Stir in 2 teaspoons of pepper and the sage, cover and set aside.
• Remove the pork from the oven and set aside. Place the roasting pan over low heat and add half of the carrot broth, scraping well with a wooden spoon. Add the remaining broth, adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to taste and simmer until its volume is reduced by half.
• Meanwhile, place a spoonful of the polenta in the center of 4 plates. Slice the pork into thin disks and fan around the polenta. Add the beans to the carrot broth and ladle over the pork slices and serve.

CALZAGATTI (PAN-FRIED POLENTA AND BEANS)

Steps:

• Bring 3 cups of water to boil in a large pot. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Sprinkle in polenta, whisking constantly, to avoid lumps from forming. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, until polenta is creamy and no longer gritty, 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off the heat.
• While polenta is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a skillet. Add guanciale and saute until crispy. Add minced onion, garlic clove, and rosemary and cook until garlic is lightly browned and fragrant but not burned, about 1 minute. Remove and discard garlic clove. Stir in cranberry beans and tomatoes and simmer until thickened a bit, about 5 minutes.
• Fold bean mixture into polenta and mix well. Pour into a 9-inch square glass dish or silicone cake pan and allow to cool, about 30 minutes.
• Flip cooled polenta over and set out, covered with cheesecloth, to air-dry until most of the moisture has evaporated, 8 hours to overnight.
• Cut dried polenta into 2x3-inch rectangles.
• Heat a pan over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. Add a few polenta rectangles to the hot oil and cook until brown and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes, without disturbing the calzagatti. Flip, and cook until brown and crisp on the other side. Remove and drain on paper towels. Continue with the rest of the calzagatti, adding more oil as necessary.