Make Ahead Polenta With Green Onions And Ricotta Recipes

POLENTA LASAGNA WITH SPINACH AND HERBY RICOTTA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees and butter an 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet pan. Grease a rubber spatula with butter.
• Prepare the polenta: In a large pot, bring 6 cups water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, then slowly pour in polenta, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking often, until polenta thickens, 8 to 12 minutes. Whisk in 4 tablespoons butter until melted. Whisk in spinach until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in 1 cup grated Parmesan.
• Scrape polenta onto the prepared baking sheet. Using the greased rubber spatula, spread the mixture into a thin, even layer to cover the entire pan, all the way to corners. Sprinkle 1/2 cup grated Parmesan on top. Bake until polenta is firm and cheese has melted, 12 to 18 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack until completely cooled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or place in refrigerator until cool to touch, about 40 to 50 minutes. (Polenta can be baked the day before and refrigerated until needed.)
• When ready to bake the lasagna, heat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
• Prepare the ricotta filling: In a small bowl, mix ricotta, parsley, basil, egg, black pepper, nutmeg and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix until well combined and set aside.
• Taste the marinara sauce. If it needs some zip, stir in any or all of the optional ingredients.
• Assemble the lasagna: Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut cooled polenta in half widthwise, creating 2 pieces roughly 9 by 13 inches each. Using a large spatula, gently place one half in prepared baking dish. (It is important for polenta to be completely cooled and firm; otherwise, the pieces may break when transferring to baking dish. If anything breaks, just reassemble it in the pan. It won't make much of a difference once it's covered in sauce and baked.)
• Spread about half the ricotta mixture in an even layer on top of polenta. Pour about half of marinara sauce on top of ricotta, sprinkle with about half of the shredded mozzarella. Repeat with remaining polenta, ricotta, marinara and mozzarella. Once assembled, sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan on top.
• Place baking dish on top of a rimmed sheet pan in case the lasagna bubbles over. Bake until cheese melts, about 30 minutes. If you like, you can broil lasagna for 2 minutes after baking until cheese starts to bubble and develop brown spots.
• Remove from oven and let lasagna stand for about 15 minutes to firm up before serving. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 3 months.

CREAMY BAKED POLENTA WITH HERBS AND GREEN ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour 6 cups water into 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Whisk polenta, salt, and pepper into water. Bake uncovered 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in small skillet over medium heat. Add green onions and sauté 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and thyme, then cream. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
• Stir polenta to blend. Stir green onion mixture, cheese, and lemon peel into polenta. Continue to bake uncovered until polenta is creamy and liquid is completely absorbed, about 10 minutes longer. Let stand 5 minutes; serve.

BAKED POLENTA WITH RICOTTA AND PARMESAN

Steps:

• Soak polenta in cold water for 1 hour. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Drain polenta, then place in a heavy-bottomed pot or ovenproof baking dish. Add salt and 4 cups water.
• Place pot in oven, cover, and bake for 45 minutes. (The polenta will begin to simmer and absorb water after a few minutes. No need to stir.)
• After 45 minutes, uncover and stir in the olive oil, ricotta and Parmesan, but don't overmix. Some of the ricotta should remain in big blobs. The mixture may be a bit soupy at this point, but will thicken as it continues to cook. Bake, uncovered, for another 15 minutes, until top has browned. Finish with a generous amount of pepper.

BAKED POLENTA WITH TOMATO SAUCE AND RICOTTA

Steps:

• To prepare the tomato sauce:
• Preheat the oven to 425°F. Place the tomatoes, yellow onion, and garlic in a baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until the garlic is soft and the skin is peeling away from the tomatoes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Remove the skin from the tomatoes and put in a saucepan. Squeeze the garlic out of the bulb and into the tomatoes. Remove the skin from the onion. Coarsely chop the onion and add to the tomatoes.
• Add the olive oil to the tomatoes and puree with a handheld immersion blender until smooth. You may need to add up to 1/3 cup water if there is not enough liquid. Season with salt. Warm the tomato sauce just prior to use.
• To prepare the polenta:
• Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of water to a simmer and stream in the polenta. Whisk together until there are no lumps. Cover with a lid and continue to cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes. Be careful when you go to stir the polenta-it tends to spit out pieces of the cornmeal, which is very hot. Remove the polenta from the heat and stir in the olive oil and basil. Drop in teaspoon-size pieces of the ricotta cheese. Pour the polenta into an 8-inch square baking pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and let sit for 1 hour or until the polenta has firmed up. Bake the polenta in the oven for 15 minutes or until heated through. Cut the polenta into 8 equal pieces.
• To serve:
• Place 1/2 cup warm tomato sauce in 4 shallow bowls and top with two pieces of the polenta. Sprinkle with the chopped basil.

POLENTA AL FORNO WITH SPINACH, RICOTTA AND FONTINA

Steps:

• Blanch spinach briefly in a large pot of boiling water, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain and cool. Squeeze all excess moisture from spinach and roughly chop.
• In a large bowl, combine chopped spinach and ricotta. Season with salt and pepper, then add cayenne, lemon zest, half the Parmesan and all but 2 tablespoons of the fontina and stir well.
• Butter a 9- by 12-inch casserole dish. Ladle in half of the warm, soft polenta and spread with a spatula to make a thin layer. Spoon spinach mixture evenly over it. Top with remaining soft polenta and spread to smooth the surface. (May be made ahead up to this point, then covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before baking.)
• Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and fontina. Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

CRUNCHY CHEESY OVEN-BAKED POLENTA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 17x12-inch half-sheet pan with cooking spray.
• In 1 1/2-quart saucepan, cook oil, butter and garlic over medium-high heat 2 to 3 minutes or until garlic is transparent (do not let garlic burn). Add whipping cream; heat to a slight simmer. Stir in Gorgonzola cheese until melted. Stir in pecorino-Romano cheese. Remove from heat.
• Cut polenta into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices in pan. Ladle cheese sauce evenly over polenta; sprinkle with pepper. Sprinkle bread crumbs evenly over top.
• Bake uncovered about 15 minutes.
• Set oven control to broil. Broil 2 to 3 minutes or until top is golden brown. Garnish with basil. Serve warm.

BAKED POLENTA WITH SWISS CHARD AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly oil 2-quart glass baking dish. Heat oil in heavy large deep skillet over medium heat. Add onion; sauté until tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in garlic and crushed red pepper, then chard; cover and cook until chard is tender, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Uncover; stir until any excess liquid in skillet evaporates. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, bring 3 1/2 cups water and salt to boil in heavy large saucepan. Gradually stir polenta into boiling water. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until polenta is very thick, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Whisk ricotta and eggs in bowl; whisk in 1 cup hot polenta. Stir ricotta mixture into polenta in saucepan. Spread half of polenta mixture in baking dish. Spread half of chard mixture over. Sprinkle with half of mozzarella. Repeat layering with remaining polenta, chard, and cheese. Bake until puffed and brown on top, about 45 minutes. Cool 30 minutes.

MAKE-AHEAD POLENTA WITH GREEN ONIONS AND RICOTTA

Steps:

• Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) broiler-proof baking dish with cooking spray. (Do not use a glass baking dish if you want to broil the ricotta topping; glass baking dishes can break under the broiler.)
• In 4-quart Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add green onions; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add milk, water and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt; heat to boiling, stirring occasionally.
• Still over medium heat, slowly add cornmeal, stirring constantly with whisk until mixture thickens, 5 to 10 minutes. (If mixture starts to bubble and spatter, reduce heat to medium-low.) Remove from heat. Stir in pepper, Parmesan cheese and half of the chives. If desired, taste and adjust seasonings.
• Pour into baking dish; spread evenly. Cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Cover loosely with foil; refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
• For ricotta topping, in medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, remaining half of the chives and the eggs. Cover; refrigerate until ready to use. (This can also be made a day ahead or the day of.)
• Heat oven to 400°F. Spread ricotta topping evenly over top of polenta.
• Bake about 40 minutes or until thoroughly heated. (If using a broiler-proof dish and you'd like to brown the top, you can set it under the broiler for a few minutes.) Cool slightly before serving.