Sausage Polenta Bake | Chilled Polenta (VIDEO)
Baked Polenta & Sausage
Preheat oven 400ºF
1 TBSP olive oil
1 18oz tube polenta (find it in the refrigerated produce section of the store)
1/2 large white onion, thinly sliced
1 orange or yellow bell pepper, roughly diced into 1” pieces
1 pound sweet Italian (or hot) sausage
1 6oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained & coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1/3 cup chicken stock or beef stock
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/3 lemon to squeeze
salt & pepper as needed
In a skillet over medium heat bring the oil to temperature. Add onion and peppers and cook until translucent, about 5-6 minutes.
Add the sausage and brown until about halfway done, not raw, but not totally browned either.
Add artichoke hearts, and cook for 1 minute. Add garlic for 30 seconds, until it becomes fragrant. Remove from heat.
Slice the polenta crossways into 1/4” thick pieces (circles).
In a 9” x 13” rounded dish (or an 8” x 10”), starting at one end add some of the sausage, pepper & onions, then stack 2-3 slices of polenta on its thin end against it. The polenta will lay against the sausage, and that’s fine. Keep alternating sausage and polenta. Use all the polenta and sausage.
Pour over the stock.
Bake uncovered 20-25 minutes. The top will get browned and crispy.
Remove from oven, sprinkle some parsley over the top and serve hot. Squeeze the lemon over the top to add the juice. You can grate some Parmesan or Asiago cheese over the top. It pairs well with a salad or a nice green vegetable like broccoli or roasted Brussels sprouts.
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If you wish to make your own polenta, here’s how for this recipe. It’s best to make it earlier in the day, or the night before so it totally chills.
Chilled Polenta
4 cups chicken stock (homemade is best for this)
2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 2 cloves)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 TBSP kosher salt
1 TSP black pepper
1/4 TSP red pepper flakes
1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup crème Fraîche or sour cream
2 TBSP unsalted butter
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, add the stock and garlic. Bring the stock to a boil.
Lower heat to medium-low. Use a whisk, and slowly whisk the cornmeal into the stock. Go slow, so there are no lumps.
Add the salt & pepper and red pepper flakes, and keep at a simmer. Use a wood spoon to stir almost consistently for about 10 minutes. It will become very thick. Scrape the bottom of the pan often to be sure it’s not sticking.
After 10 minutes, remove pot from heat. Add Parmesan, crème Fraîche, and butter, and stir in completely.
Line an 11” x 14” (for thinner circles) or 9” x 13” (for thicker circles) baking dish with a piece of parchment paper. While it’s still very hot (be careful), pour polenta into the baking dish. Smooth it out on top with an offset spatula. Transfer the dish to the refrigerator, and let totally cool. The polenta will solidify.
Once it’s totally chilled, use a butter knife to run along the edge of the dish to loosen the polenta. Working quickly, turn it out onto a cutting board. Use a 2” cookie cutter (or just the rim of a drinking glass) and cut out about 10 portions. Cut starting from the edge to get as much from it as possible. You can warm up any scraps of polenta to eat as normal.
Use in the recipe above. To eat hot, skip the chilling steps and serve hot once you’ve added the final ingredients.