Sweet Italian sausage is used in this hearty, tomato-based casserole, which has a polenta shell and mozzarella cheese on top. This is a fantastic alternative to your standard pasta dish. Nothing beats this when served with a green salad and a loaf of Italian bread!
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr 10 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 25 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup milk
- 9 ¼ ounces instant polenta
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 (3.5 ounce) links sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- ½ cup chopped onions
- 3 cloves garlic, diced
- 1 ½ cups dry white wine
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Combine water and milk in a large saucepan with polenta. Bring to a boil over high heat; add Parmesan cheese and butter. Stir constantly until thickened, about 3 minutes. Pour polenta into a large, round casserole dish, filling about 1 inch deep.
- Heat olive oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir sausage, mushrooms, onion, and garlic in the skillet until sausage is browned and crumbly, about 10 minutes. Add wine, tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, Italian seasoning, and oregano; cook over medium heat for 30 minutes.
- Pour tomato sauce mixture over polenta. Top with mozzarella cheese.
- Bake in the preheated oven until golden, about 20 minutes.
- Muenster cheese is also good if you don’t have mozzarella.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 546 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 48 g |
| Cholesterol | 59 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 5 g |
| Protein | 25 g |
| Saturated Fat | 11 g |
| Sodium | 1323 mg |
| Sugars | 13 g |
| Fat | 24 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |