Vegetable Polenta Casserole

Another easy, tasty vegetarian dish.  I think I could really be a vegetarian... if it didn't mean giving up bacon. 

The original recipe calls for frozen spinach, but who would ever do that to themselves?  Just wilt fresh spinach in a large pot, drain, and use...

Vegetable Polenta Casserole

Ingredients

3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup cornmeal
8 oz. chopped spinach, cooked
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 small onion
1 small zucchini
1 small yellow squash
1 (15 oz.) diced tomatoes
½ tsp basil
½ tsp oregano
½ tsp smoked paprika
freshly ground black pepper
4 oz. (1 cup) shredded mozzarella

Directions

Bring the vegetable broth to a rolling boil in a medium sauce pot. Stir together the cornmeal plus one cup of water to make a slurry, then stir it into the boiling water (this helps reduce clumps). Reduce the heat and let it simmer for 10-15, or until thickened. Once thickened, stir in the spinach until heated through.

Meanwhile, mince the garlic and dice the onion, zucchini, and squash. Combine the onion, garlic, and olive oil in a large skillet and sauté over medium heat until the onions are softened. Add the zucchini and squash and sauté about five minutes more.

Once the zucchini and squash are soft, add the tomatoes, basil, oregano, paprika, and pepper. Stir to combine and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Begin to preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

When the cornmeal (polenta) is finished cooking, pour it into the bottom of an 8x8 inch casserole dish. After the vegetable mixture has finished simmering, spread it on top of the polenta in the casserole dish. Top with the shredded mozzarella.

Bake the casserole for about 20-25 minutes, or until it is heated through and the cheese is bubbly on top. Serve hot.




Original link:
http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/01/vegetable-polenta-casserole/