My new favorite side dish

I’ve been on a major polenta kick recently.  I had never really made it until I made the braised pork with balsamic and grapes, and now I’m hooked.  It’s cheap, and while it’s a minor pain in the neck to make since it requires that you stir pretty much non stop for 10-15 minutes, it goes so well with so many things.

I wanted to do something a little different with it, so I found this recipe and whipped up a batch.  It’s delicious.  I only made half the batch, and used a bit more liquid than he recommended because I like mine really soft and creamy.   The recipe made a ton – enough for two sides with pork chops and a salad, and then for two main courses topped with slow roasted tomatoes.  The proportions below is about half of what the original recipe calls for.

Polenta With Goat Cheese and Rosemary
Adapted from the September 20, 2009 New York Times, adapted from Matthew Kenney

Ingredients
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, plus more as needed
1 cup polenta
3 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Directions
Bring the stock to a boil in a large, heavy saucepan over high heat.  Whisk in the polenta in a steady stream, then decrease the heat to medium.   Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, more constantly than you would think possible, until the polenta begins to thicken, approximately 10 minutes. 

Add the cheese and rosemary and stir for approximately 2 more minutes.  Stir in the butter, season with salt and pepper to taste and serve. 

It keeps well on the stove, though it thickens as it rests, so you may need to hit it off with a couple tablespoons of liquid just before serving.  I finished cooking it before starting on my main course, and just added a splash of milk and gave it a stir just before serving.

To serve the polenta, I cooked pork chops in a cast iron skillet.  When those were done, I took them out of the pan, and added a minced shallot, a bit of chopped fresh rosemary and sage, a pat of butter, and a 1/2 cup or so of apple cider.  Simmer for a couple minutes and voila.  I poured that over the pork chops and polenta.  It was a really fantastic fall meal.

I was lucky enough to find some dry farmed tomatoes at the farmers market here in late October, so I put those to work with the leftovers.  I slow roasted them and poured them and the juices into a heavy pan with a bit more water.  Simmered for a few minutes and then spooned the sauce over the warmed polenta. 

Yeah, it looks gross, but it tasted amazing.