Roasted Corn and Poblano Polenta with Cumin and Chili Shrimp

I saw this recipe on a new blog that I recently found, elly says opa.  I knew right away that Scot would love this dish.  It has all his favorite things.  He loves Mexican flavors, especially the flavor of corn.  

The idea of transforming a normally Italian polenta dish into something Mexican is pure genius.  I mean, the corn flavor of polenta pairs so well with Mexican.  

I love freshly roasted peppers.  Even though I do use jarred roasted red peppers to speed up a week night meal...roasting them yourself is amazing.  I have never seen other varieties of jarred roasted peppers, so most of the time I have to roast them, anyways.  But they take on a whole new thang.  SO good.  In fact, I used two poblano peppers instead of one, as the original recipe suggested.

We had this polenta with cumin and chili shrimp, as Elly suggested.  Just season cleaned shrimp with salt, pepper, chili powder, and cumin.  Then, saute in a little oil over medium-high heat, 1-2 minutes per side. 

Lastly, the cheese is really optional.  I only added it because I already shredded it.  But, taste the polenta without it.  It is so creamy and delicious.  It doesn't need it at all.  

Roasted Corn & Poblano Polenta

adapted from elly says opa

2 poblano peppers

3/4 cup roasted corn (approximately 2 ears of fresh corn)

2 tsp. butter

1 clove garlic, grated

1-2/3 to 2 cups chicken broth (depending on how thick you want the polenta)

1/4 tsp. paprika

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup (1 oz.) cheddar or Monterey jack cheese (optional)

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375° F. If using fresh, cut kernels off of ears of corn. Spread kernels in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for about 10 minutes.

Turn oven to broiler setting, char the poblano peppers on all sides, until the skin is blistery and black. Put in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Once cooled, peel and dice.

(Alternatively, you can roast the corn and the poblano peppers on the grill.)

Heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir until just fragrant. Stir in the chicken broth, paprika, and salt and pepper to taste; bring to a boil.

Slowly whisk in the polenta - it will absorb the liquid almost immediately. Add the diced poblano and corn. Reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer, stirring frequently, until cooked, about 10-15 minutes.

Off the heat, stir in the cheese and re-season if necessary. Serve immediately.

(Servings: 2, Prep time: 45 min., Cook time: 20 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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Backpacking Meal: Polenta with Spinach and Goat Cheese

I am now getting back to posting some backpacking recipes from the yurt trip over spring break. The one when I sat home alone, watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution with the best dog ever. And I cried. Not about the home alone thing, but while watching Jamie's show. I am very passionate about eating real food and I am emotional. About everything. Once I cried while watching an infomercial. Just kidding. I don't watch those. Or cry while watching those.

Anyways, after just saying that I am passionate about eating real food...I present to you a backpacking recipe! This one is actually very fresh and real. Although, I am a supporter of processing food for backpacking. It is a food safety thing. And a lighter pack thing.

This dish is pretty quick. If it is all packaged right (see above), when you are on the trail (or in your yurt), all you have to do is wilt the spinach and cook the polenta.

Then you just assemble: polenta, spinach, top with goat cheese, craisins and almonds. Polenta is a great low fuel dish. For winter backpacking (my fav!), all of these ingredients would keep fine for several days. For summer backpacking, this would have to be the first night's dinner. Unless you are at high enough altitude to keep it cool overnight...but I still wouldn't. However, you could omit the spinach and goat cheese (sad), and then this meal could be made at any point in a trip.

Bottom line, when backpacking/camping, it is nice (/necessary for me) to have some interesting things to eat. Something other than bars, gorp, and beef jerky. Even though, I kind of love all those things too.

Please note that I was not there to monitor the preparation of this meal. And it is a mystery still, why the polenta was so soupy? I am guessing it was either the wrong amount of water, the altitude (they were camping at 12,000 ft), or maybe the temperature of the water. These three were hungry and not picky at all, they slurped up that soupy polenta without thinking twice about it.

Backpacking Meal: Polenta with Spinach

2 cups water

2 chicken bouillon cubes

3/4 cup polenta

1/8 cup grated parmesan

3 tbsp butter, separated

pinch of salt

1 bag pre-washed spinach

2 oz. of goat cheese

handful of craisins

handful of slivered almonds

Boil 2 cups of water with chicken bouillon cubes. Once it comes to a bowl, take off heat. Slowly stream in polenta while stirring liquid continuously and briskly (to avoid clumping). Once combined and smooth, add in parmesan and 2 tbsp of butter with a pinch of salt.

In the meantime, wilt spinach in a separate skillet in the remaining 1 tbsp of butter.

To serve, pour some polenta in a bowl. Then, top each serving with pieces of goat cheese (just break up with fingers). Top with cooked spinach. Sprinkle with craisins and slivered almonds.

(Servings: 3, Prep time: 10 min., Cook time: 10 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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More pics of the trip?

Here is what a yurt looks like inside (very cozy):

Kitchen and bedroom all in one:

Melting snow:

Sledding outside the yurt:

Chopping wood for the fire (I LOVE stuff like this...not doing it necessarily, but being in the presence of others working hard to stay alive is so fun):

Biggest sledding hill ever:

These guys love sledding:

Meatballs in Sauce with Creamy Polenta

This was pretty much amazing. I wanted to make polenta with meatballs and decided to make it this week...last week. Then, TODAY, Pioneer Woman posted a recipe for spaghetti and meatballs. So, I decided to base my recipe off of hers because everything she does is amazing. I didn't follow hers exactly, but I adjusted the recipe below to what I actually did.

These meatballs are SO good. The sauce (which is really quite a bit different from hers), was also soooooooo goood.

And this is a great little polenta recipe. I have some polenta directly from Italy that Scot brought back for me last summer. It is a little finer than regular corn meal. And it is just delicious.

The trick to good meatballs, from my experience of making a lot of bad ones, is. Ok, I need a new sentence. First, the meatballs can't be too big. The diameter should be 1-1.5 inches. Any bigger and they won't cook all the way through. Second, you need to brown them first for a few minutes on each side. Then, finish cooking them in some sort of a sauce. Then, you need to mix the ground meat with various things to keep them moist...bread crumbs, cheese, herbs, etc. Eggs to bind them. But, I have done all that plenty of times and still had failure. So, I think the first two things are key.

Polenta hardens when it cools. So, this polenta recipe is just enough for 2-3 servings (/us for dinner). I made some pasta to package up with the leftover sauce and meatballs. You could also just save the meatballs for meatball subs. You could also make a double batch of polenta. Make a roll of the leftover polenta (in plastic wrap...like how you would make an herb butter). After it sets up in the refrigerator, slice it into disks, and grill it. Then, you could serve the grilled polenta with the leftover sauce and meatballs, or something else. Lots of options.

Meatballs and Marinara Sauce

adapted from Pioneer Woman

Meatballs:

3/4 pounds Ground Beef

3/4 pounds Ground Pork

3/4 cups Fine Bread Crumbs

2 whole Eggs

3/4 cups Freshly Grated Parmesan

1/4 cups Flat-leaf Parsley, Minced

1/4 teaspoons Salt

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Splash Of Milk

1/2 cups Olive Oil

Sauce:

1 whole Yellow Onion, peeled

2 whole (28-ounce) Can Whole Tomatoes

1/4 teaspoons Salt

1 teaspoon Sugar

a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1/4 cups Flat-leaf Parsley, Minced

8 whole Fresh Basil Leaves, Chiffonade (optional)

Start sauce. Put all the ingredients for the sauce except the fresh herbs (parsley and basil) in a Dutch oven or large pot. Cook for about 45 minutes (or longer…the longer, the better), mashing up the tomatoes with a potato masher or back of the spoon as they cook. Add chopped parsley after sauce has become less chunky and more saucy.

To make the meatballs, combine meat, garlic, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, eggs, salt, pepper, parsley, and a splash of milk in a mixing bowl. Mix together well with hands. Roll into 25 1 1/2-inch balls and place on a cookie sheet. Place cookie sheet into the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to firm up.

To brown the meatballs, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add meatballs 8 at a time, turning to brown. Once browned on both sides, put in marinara sauce. Continue until all the meatballs are browned and in sauce. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, stirring very gently a couple of times during the simmer.

Just before serving, stir in basil if using.

Serve over polenta (recipe below). Sprinkle with extra Parmesan.

Polenta

by Tyler Florence

2 cups water or chicken stock

3/4 cups finely ground cornmeal or polenta

1/8 cup heavy cream

1/8 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1.5 tablespoons unsalted butter

Pinch kosher salt

In a large saucepan bring the chicken stock to a slow simmer. Quickly whisk the cornmeal into the stock and lower the temperature to keep it from splattering. Stir in the cream, Parmesan, butter, and salt. Turn off the heat and keep in a warm place until the meatballs are ready.

(Servings: 6 for sauce and meatballs, 2-3 for polenta, Prep time: 45 min., Cook time: 75 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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BBQ Meatloaf with Spicy Corn Fritters and Maple, Dijon Brussel Sprouts

Meatloaf!!! I have been thinking about making a loaf of meat for about half a year. Obviously avoiding it because we all know meatloaf isn't the most sought after dish. I had meatloaf growing up. I never hated it, never loved it. Mom, no offense. I mean, meatloaf is just meatloaf. It is easy. Quick. Cheap. Does the job. So anyway, I haven't really had it for a LONG time. I thought I would find an interesting recipe and give it a shot. See how bad or good it really is. Result: pretty decent! It had great reviews...people were drooling over it. Scot loved it, obv. From now on, I probably will only tell you when he doesn't like something. He loves everything. It's great. Even when I mess up, burn things, drop something of the floor or throw something against the wall out of rage. As a last resort, I always have Copper. Actually, I take that back, Copper is definitely more picky than Scot. I always have Scot, then.

Back on track. In addition to the BBQ meatloaf, I have been searching for a corn fritter recipe. When I was young (maybe in 4th or 5th grade), I made a meal "by myself" for my family. I remember exactly what it was: pork tenderloin, corn fritters, green beans and a mousse type dessert. I got the entire meal from an American Girl dolls cookbook and it was supposed to be a meal that a particular doll (I think Molly) would eat in the period she lived in. It was probably the first thing I ever cooked. I don't remember if it was good or anything, but I do remember really liking the corn fritters. So, I tried to find the recipe. And, I found that there actually aren't that many corn fritter recipes out there, especially like the one I remembered. But then, I found this one woman who referenced the American Girl fritters in her blog and a recipe with it! The recipe is not the same one in the cookbook, but is delicious. She says the recipe from the cookbook is actually kind of toned down, kid-friendly, so she spiced it up for adults. And that is what I made tonight. And all you vegetarians out there (Jen), corn fritters/fritters should be a staple for you! They are great.

To round out the meal, I made some brussel sprouts. I make them all the time, just roast them with some bacon, olive oil, salt and pepper. Since I am into the food blogs now, I found a simple recipe for roasted brussel sprouts tossed with a maple, dijon vinaigrette and toasted almonds. Since it's Sunday, I fig'ed, why not? So, three new recipes in one Sunday blog. Sorry if this is overwhelming but all three recipes are pretty simple.

As for tips, I would like to stress that I didn't measure any of the ingredients in these recipes except the polenta/water ratio. It just isn't worth it. But, as we all know, I am quite the risk taker.

Barbeque Meatloaf

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen modified by Shanon

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1 cup bread crumbs

1 onion, grated using box grater

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 can tomato sauce (15 oz)

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix together the beef, bread crumbs, onion, egg, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce. Form this mixture into a loaf and place it in a shallow pan. Stir together the remaining tomato sauce, vinegar, sugar, mustard, Worcestershire and the water (if too thick). Pour this sauce over the meatloaf. Bake for 1 hour, basting every 15 minutes with the pan juices.

Spicy Corn Fritters (makes 9 fritters)

From www.kitchenist.com modified by Shanon

Ingredients

½ cup corn (fresh is best, next best is frozen)

juice of 1 lime

3 finely chopped green onions

1 Tbs. chopped cilantro

1/2 tsp. salt


1/4 tsp. ground cumin


1/4 tsp. ground coriander


1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes


1 1/3 cup water


1/3 cup polenta or cornmeal (the quick-cooking kind)


vegetable or other light oil, for frying

1. Mix together the corn, lime juice onion, coriander, salt and spices together in a small bowl and set aside.



2. Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the polenta in a steady stream and mix with a whisk for about 2 minutes, until thickened.



3. Remove the polenta from the heat and stir in the corn mixture. Set aside to cool slightly. Line a plate with paper towels and set next to the stove.



4. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. When hot, spoon in generous tablespoonfuls of batter and flatten slightly with a spoon. Cook for 4-5 minutes on each side, then remove to the towel-lined plate. Serve hot, with any spicy dipping sauce that you like.

Maple Dijon Roasted Brussels Sprouts

from Closet Cooking modified by Shanon

(makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds brussels sprouts (trimmed and halved)

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 tablespoon grainy mustard

1 small clove garlic (grated)

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup almond slices (toasted)

Directions:

1. Toss the brussels sprouts in the oil along with the salt and pepper.

2. Arrange the brussels sprouts in a single layer on a baking sheet.

3. Roast in a preheated 400F oven until they start to caramelize, flipping them once in between, about 30 minutes.

4. Mix the oil, vinegar, maple syrup, mustards, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl.

5. Toss the brussels sprouts and almonds in the maple dijon vinaigrette (you may not need it all).

Printable Version (all in one)