Layered Polenta Casserole Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish.
• Combine cherry tomatoes, basil, garlic, red wine, and 1/8 teaspoon salt for marinara in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to puree. Set aside.
• Bring water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk in polenta slowly, whisking constantly to ensure there are no lumps. Bring back to a boil; reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in Pecorino Romano cheese and butter.
• Pour half of the polenta into the prepared casserole dish. Top with half of the sliced zucchini, overlapping slices slightly. Top zucchini with half of the marinara sauce, then sprinkle with half of the Italian-style cheese. Repeat layers one more time. Cover.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until cheese on top is slightly brown, about 10 minutes more. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400ºF degrees with rack in upper third.
• In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat; add the onion, garlic, and mushrooms cook, stirring, until soft and lightly golden, about 8 minutes.
• Add tomatoes and salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened, about 30 minutes.
• Stir in vinegar, oregano, basil & Italian seasoning; season with pepper.
• Remove sauce from heat.
• Meanwhile, heat a large cast-iron skillet or grill pan over medium heat; lightly brush eggplant slices with the remaining tablespoon oil.
• Working in batches, lay slices in skillet in a single layer; cook until browned and they begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• Transfer to a plate.
• Spoon about a cup tomato sauce into a 9-inch square baking dish, spreading to coat evenly; arrange eggplant slices snugly in a single layer.
• Spoon about 1 cup tomato sauce over eggplant, and arrange polenta rounds in slightly overlapping slices on top.
• Repeat with sauce and another layer of eggplant.
• Finish by dotting with remaining tomato sauce.
• Cover with foil; bake until bubbling and juicy, about 30 minutes.
• Remove foil; continue baking until sauce is lightly caramelized and eggplant is tender, about 15 minutes more.
• Remove from oven; let cool slightly, and serve.

Steps:

• Heat 5 cups of the chicken stock in a saucepot to a low boil; add the polenta and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook, stirring and adding more stock as needed to keep the mixture loose, until thickened and soft, 40 to 45 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the butter, pour the polenta onto nonstick baking sheets (1 large or 2 small), spread into a 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick even layer and cool totally. Cut into rectangular shapes to easily remove for layering.
• Cover the dried porcinis with the remaining 1 cup chicken stock and 1/2 cup water in a small pot; bring to a simmer and cook to reconstitute. Remove the tender mushrooms and chop. Reserve the mushrooms and their liquid.
• Heat the EVOO in a large, deep skillet. Add the fresh mushrooms and cook until dark and tender, about 15 minutes. Add the thyme and shallots, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Deglaze the skillet with the wine. Add the stock and porcinis with some of their liquid (be careful to avoid any grit) and reduce the heat to low.
• To make the bechamel, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepot, add the garlic and swirl a minute or two. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and cook until thickened. Add half of the cheese.
• Place a layer of the polenta in a medium casserole dish and top with half of the mushrooms and bechamel. Repeat the layers, and then end with a layer of polenta. Dot with butter and top with the remaining cheese.
• Cool and store for a make-ahead meal, or bake to serve. Bake at 375 degrees F from room temperature until brown, bubbling and hot through, about 50 minutes.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°. Grease rectangular baking dish, 11x7x1 1/2 inches.
• Cook polenta in salted water as directed on package; stir in oregano. Spread in baking dish.
• Heat oil in nonstick 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook zucchini in oil 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender. Stir in marinara sauce; reduce heat to medium. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
• Spoon zucchini mixture over polenta. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered about 30 minutes or until bubbly around edges.

Steps:

• For polenta, in a small bowl, whisk cornmeal, salt and 1 cup water until smooth. In a large saucepan, bring remaining water to a boil. Add cornmeal mixture, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, about 3 minutes. , Reduce heat to low; cover and cook for 15 minutes. Divide mixture between 2 greased 8-in. square baking dishes. Cover and refrigerate until firm, about 1-1/2 hours., In a large skillet, cook the beef, onion, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, mushrooms, herbs and hot pepper sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until thickened., Loosen 1 polenta from sides and bottom of dish; invert onto a waxed paper-lined baking sheet and set aside. Spoon half of the meat mixture over the remaining polenta. Sprinkle with half the mozzarella and half the Parmesan cheese. Top with reserved polenta and remaining meat mixture., Cover and bake at 350° until heated through, 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until cheese is melted, 5 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

Steps:

• Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add sweet Italian sausages; saut&é sausages until golden brown on all sides, about 4 minutes. Add thinly sliced cabbage; saut&é until cabbage is wilted, about 10 minutes. Add 2 cups beef stock and chopped tomatoes. Bring to a boil. reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer 40 minutes to blend flavors. Remove sausages.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spoon half of Basic Polenta into 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Top with half of cabbage and half of cooking liquid. Spoon remaing polenta atop cabbage. Arrage Italian sausages atop polenta. Spoon remaining cabbage and cooking liquid over sausages. Bake unitl flavors blend, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a 8x8-inch casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside.
• Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in green pepper, garlic, and green onions; cook until the pepper softens, about 3 minutes. Pour in marinara sauce and simmer 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Mix together fontina and provolone in a bowl. Spread a thin layer of sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange 1/3 of the polenta slices in the dish, top with 1/3 the fontina and provolone mixture. Spread a thin layer of sauce over cheese. Repeat layers twice. Top casserole with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese is bubbly and golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees; with rack in upper third. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, until soft and lightly golden, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes and salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir in vinegar, oregano, and basil; season with pepper. Remove sauce from heat.
• Meanwhile, heat a large cast-iron skillet or grill pan over medium heat. Lightly brush eggplant slices with the remaining tablespoon oil. Working in batches, lay slices in skillet in a single layer; cook until browned and they begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
• Spoon about 1/2 cup tomato sauce into a 9-inch square baking dish, spreading to coat evenly. Arrange eggplant slices snugly in a single layer. Spoon about 1 cup tomato sauce over eggplant, and arrange polenta rounds in slightly overlapping slices on top. Repeat with sauce and another layer of eggplant. Finish by dotting with remaining tomato sauce.
• Cover with foil; bake until bubbling and juicy, about 30 minutes. Remove foil; continue baking until sauce is lightly caramelized and eggplant is tender, about 15 minutes more. Remove from oven; let cool slightly, and serve.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F, with a rack in the upper third. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, until soft and lightly golden, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir in the vinegar, oregano, and basil; season with pepper. Remove the sauce from the heat.
• Meanwhile, heat a large cast-iron skillet or grill pan over medium heat. Lightly brush the eggplant slices with the remaining tablespoon oil. Working in batches, lay the slices in skillet in a single layer; cook until browned and beginning to soften, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
• Spoon about 1/2 cup tomato sauce into a 9-inch-square baking dish, spreading to coat evenly. Arrange the eggplant slices snugly in a single layer. Spoon about 1 cup tomato sauce over the eggplant, and arrange the polenta rounds in slightly overlapping slices on top. Repeat with the sauce and another layer of eggplant. Finish by dotting with the remaining tomato sauce.
• Cover with foil; bake until bubbling and juicy, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil; continue baking until the sauce is lightly caramelized and the eggplant is tender, about 15 minutes more. Remove from oven; let cool slightly, and serve.
• (Per serving)
• Calories: 156
• Fat: 3g
• Cholesterol: 0mg
• Carbohydrate: 30g
• Sodium: 343mg
• Protein: 5g
• Fiber: 7g

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the polenta in half-inch slices and cover the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch casserole dish. Press together to make one layer.
• Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add peppers, onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook until peppers are soft, about 5 minutes. Add sausage and cook until the meat loses its raw color, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, thyme and red pepper flakes, cook about 1 minute.
• Add tomatoes and juice; bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Take off heat and stir in the vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Spread sausage mixture evenly over the polenta and sprinkle with cheese. Bake in middle rack of oven until the polenta is heated through, about 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley before serving. Serves 6 to 8.