This one-pan casserole of creamy porridge-like polenta and roasted vegetables is one of my favorite dishes. We served this at our March and June retreats and will probably serve it again at our meditation retreat this October. Once the polenta has baked until set, it gets crumbled and tossed with a mix of vegetables. I’ve only made it with Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, and shallots, but carrots and winter squash would also be good as would other combinations. We will not include the shallots in retreat fare as they are one of the onion family members that are not recommended for meditation and are prohibited for monastics. Lemon, fresh sage, and parsley–all from the herb garden, and back yard flavor this dish. A portion is set aside for those vegans present and the rest is toped with crumbled goat cheese as you see below and served with soup and/or salad and perhaps a condiment.
Ingredients:
Polenta
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup medium-grind yellow or white cornmeal
1/2 tsp salt
4 cups water
Vegetables
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
6 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered or halved if large
1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks
2 shallots, halved or quartered if large (if allowed) or chopped celery or fennel
4 garlic cloves, peeled and grated (if allowed)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage from the Herb Garden
1 lemon, zest and juice
Broil:
1 Tbsp olive oil
Serving
¼ cup crumbled goat cheese or feta
¼ cup chopped parsley leaves
More olive oil for drizzling
Directions:
Heat convection (regular) oven to 350 (375) degrees.
Polenta: Drizzle oil into a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron skillet or 9-by-13-inch baking dish*. Add water, the cornmeal and salt and whisk well. Bake, uncovered, until it has set but still has a little bite, about 15 minutes.
Vegetables: While the polenta bakes, combine the Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, shallots, garlic, sage, and lemon zest and juice in a medium bowl. Pour in oil and toss with salt and black pepper. Set aside.
Crumble the partially baked polenta with a wooden spoon or fork into large clumps. Add the vegetables plus any liquid in the bowl and toss with the polenta. Sprinkle the entire dish lightly with salt and pepper. Using oven mitts or a dish towel, cover tightly with foil and return to the oven.
Bake until the sweet potato is fork-tender and the sprouts are wilted, 30-35 minutes in convection and 40-50 in regular oven.
Broil: Remove the skillet from the oven and remove the foil. Turn the oven to broil. Crumble the polenta again and drizzle the entire pan with the remaining olive oil.
Transfer to the broiler and broil, keeping a close eye on the top, until the vegetables are dark brown and crisp around the edges, 6 to 8 minutes.
Serving: Set aside one of the pans for vegan and top the other(s) with the cheese. Sprinkle all with parsley and a drizzle of olive oil and serve immediately and enjoy.
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