Easter 2009: AKA The Polenta Disaster
One of our favorite things to do is casual potluck nights with our friends a few blocks away. It's typically 6-8 people, a smorgasboard of deliciousness, and a few games or a trip to McNally's. We haven't done one of these in awhile based on a variety of schedule conflicts. So I was really excited when we all made plans to get together for an Easter dinner.
I was doubly excited because for the holidays corinneyland broke the rules and got us a sweet gift: the cookbook from my favorite SF restaurant, Cha-Cha-Cha. Typically I make desserts or appetizers for our potlucks. This time I was ready to step it up to SIDE-DISH. :-o
I decided on the Red Polenta, because it looked quick and easy. This was critical, because mid-week everyone started chattering online about how it would be more fun to have Easter dinner on Saturday as opposed to Sunday. (booze.) I already had most of my Saturday booked up, so there was no time for a recipe with time-consuming preparation. And we had everything we needed for the dish, except for the polenta itself.
So....I've never interacted with polenta before. I assumed it was a corn-based grain that I could purchase dry in a bag or box. At e grocery store I was directed to a refrigerated case with plastic-wrapped rolls of polenta. Basically it looked like the slice-and-bake cookie dough. But I am no culinary whiz, so I paid for it and brought it home.
Saturday. 2 hours before mealtime, plenty of time! Or...not. Because even though I'm following the recipe exactly, my polenta isn't becoming "thick and fluffy." It is polenta soup. I turned up the heat to no avail. When we had to go I poured it into the casserole dish, figuring I could try baking it at the house. If everything went right, thr dish should have come out to look like the wedge-shaped food in this pic:
Mine...did not.
But everyone laughed and insisted on tasting it....and damn it, it DID taste good. And poured over the potatoes and veggies it was pretty useful. Apparently pre-soaked, pre-salted wet polenta (what I bought) is only used for deep-frying, or mixing in a food processor for a creamy dish.
But on a positive note, the iconic Cha-Cha-Cha Sangria that I also brought along was a huge hit. MMMMMMMMMMH. Easy to make: mix one bottle of red, one bottle of white (preferable dry wines - I used merlot and pinot grigio) a cup of sugar and toss in some sliced lemons, oranges, and strawberries. Chill for 4 hours and serve. In small portions, omg MY HEAD!
I was doubly excited because for the holidays corinneyland broke the rules and got us a sweet gift: the cookbook from my favorite SF restaurant, Cha-Cha-Cha. Typically I make desserts or appetizers for our potlucks. This time I was ready to step it up to SIDE-DISH. :-o
I decided on the Red Polenta, because it looked quick and easy. This was critical, because mid-week everyone started chattering online about how it would be more fun to have Easter dinner on Saturday as opposed to Sunday. (booze.) I already had most of my Saturday booked up, so there was no time for a recipe with time-consuming preparation. And we had everything we needed for the dish, except for the polenta itself.
So....I've never interacted with polenta before. I assumed it was a corn-based grain that I could purchase dry in a bag or box. At e grocery store I was directed to a refrigerated case with plastic-wrapped rolls of polenta. Basically it looked like the slice-and-bake cookie dough. But I am no culinary whiz, so I paid for it and brought it home.
Saturday. 2 hours before mealtime, plenty of time! Or...not. Because even though I'm following the recipe exactly, my polenta isn't becoming "thick and fluffy." It is polenta soup. I turned up the heat to no avail. When we had to go I poured it into the casserole dish, figuring I could try baking it at the house. If everything went right, thr dish should have come out to look like the wedge-shaped food in this pic:
Mine...did not.
But everyone laughed and insisted on tasting it....and damn it, it DID taste good. And poured over the potatoes and veggies it was pretty useful. Apparently pre-soaked, pre-salted wet polenta (what I bought) is only used for deep-frying, or mixing in a food processor for a creamy dish.
But on a positive note, the iconic Cha-Cha-Cha Sangria that I also brought along was a huge hit. MMMMMMMMMMH. Easy to make: mix one bottle of red, one bottle of white (preferable dry wines - I used merlot and pinot grigio) a cup of sugar and toss in some sliced lemons, oranges, and strawberries. Chill for 4 hours and serve. In small portions, omg MY HEAD!