Polenta Pizza Pie

Polenta:
4 cups water
1 cup corn grits/course ground cornmeal
salt and pepper
optional: sweet potato (steamed cubes) and parmesan cheese

Bring the water to a boil then slowly whisk in the cornmeal/corn grits (so that lumps don’t form).  Lower the heat to medium low and cook until the mixture is very thick.  This is a good base polenta (to use in place of pasta or as a simple side).  For the following recipe I had some sweet potato cubes, boiled soft, about a cup, that I added towards the end of the cooking. I also added about 1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon (t) of the following: thyme, basil, oregano, dill; 1/2 t salt and pepper; also 1T (tablespoon) crushed garlic. 
I add the sweet potato, parmesan, and spices when the mixture is already really thick.  Stir the mixture until everything is nicely blended.
Remove from heat and spread the hot mixture into a pan (like a rectangular (9×11 cake pan or a circular pie pan).  Let cool overnight or several hours.

Bake this polenta “crust” at 400 for about 10 minutes.  This will make the base for the polenta pie.

Pie filling:
3 T olive oil
3 T diced onions
1 T crushed garlic
1 t oregano
1/2 t sea salt
1/4 t black pepper
1/8 t sugar
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Bring all these ingredients except the parmesan cheese to a near boil.  Cook just a few minutes, then remove from heat.  Stir in parmesan cheese.  This will be the sauce/pesto to spread on the crust before adding the veggies and cheese.

1 med tomato, sliced thin
2 cups broccoli
1/2 sweet or red onion
1/2 red pepper
6 kalamata olives, sliced thin
1 t thyme, oregano, dill, basil
2 t crushed garlic
salt and pepper

Saute the veggies in olive oil, with the spices and garlic for about 10 minutes, until softened, but not overcooked.
While the veggies cook shred about 1 1/2 cups mozzerella cheese and crumble about 1/2 cup feta cheese.
To assemble the pizza pie:

Spread the pesto on the bottom, then layer the tomato slices over the pesto, sprinkle a bit of the mozzarella cheese, then the veggies, then the rest of the cheese, ending with the feta cheese.  Bake at 400, uncovered for about 20 minutes.  
Let cool for about 5 before enjoying. 
I served this with a spinach salad.  Yummy!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *