| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 35 min |
| Prep: | 5 min |
| Cook: | 30 min |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 gallon chicken stock
- 1 gallon heavy cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg
- 3/4 teaspoon gray salt
- 2 cups polenta
- 2 cups semolina
- 2 cups freshly grated fontina cheese
- 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
Instructions
- In a heavy saucepan, combine the stock and cream, and bring to a boil. Add the nutmeg and salt. Whisk in the polenta and semolina and cook over low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring often, until the grains are soft. Fold in the cheeses. Serve immediately or reserve.
- To encourage polenta to come cleanly out of the pan, cook over medium heat. Run a spatula or wooden spoon around the sides of the pan to clean off the polenta. Do not stir, but wait and watch for a few seconds until a large bubble begins to form and pushes the polenta upward. Pour immediately into a warm dish.
- The polenta can be made ahead and reheated: add 1/4 to 1/2 cup water or stock, cover the dish, and reheat in the microwave or over low heat. Whisk well before serving.
- For tabletop polenta: Set up 1 or 2 clean, untreated butcher blocks or cutting boards or lay down parchment or butcher paper over a tabletop. Pour the warm polenta out onto the table in front of guests. Pass bowls of sauces and mix-ins. Each guest mixes in their toppings and eats right off the table!
Reviews
Wow – this recipe is huge! How does he figure 8 servings? We served 12 and had enough for 20 more servings. It was also very soupy. Next time we will add at least 1 more cup of cornmeal to add more texture. I may reduce the semolina and replace with cornmeal as well. Overall tasty but too thin and I will cut the quantity in half.
Very good but it is not necessary to use cream, especially so much. As he said, in the old country we only use Flour, Water and salt. And it is still very good.One can always add some butter at the end if wanting a richer polenta and different cheeses cut in small pieces and semi-melted into the hot polenta in individual plates.
Also, Polenta is not a Southern Italian staple food at all. Staple food there are more Pasta and Pizza. In the north we use Polenta. sometimes even in lieu of bread, and rice which is grown on the banks of the Po river. Northerners in Italy are often jokingly referred to as “Polentoni”
Houston,TX
Rick Pallavicini
08/09/2010
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Ah Michael, I am 55 years old and you brought back my favorite childhood memory of making a big pot of polenta. My Dad would stir it with a 3 foot long dowel (which was our rolling pin for rolling pin for rolling out pasta) and stirred for 30 minutes then poured it on our table. My mother topped it with meaty pasta sauce and we had a feast. When I did this for my family they thought I was crazy. Polenta is a wonderful staple with so many possibilities. This is a wonderful variation of the old standard and yes everyone – it serves a lot.
This was surprisingly easy to make….I was skeptical about adding the semolina! This recipe was fantastic. I made it with the grilled vegetable on top (from the TV show that featured this recipe).
I did quarter the recipe, but would like to try it “on the table” like he did on TV! What fun!
easy to make ahead of time and very creamy…will have again
This recipe was indeed delicious and very rich. However, this whole recipe could easily have served twenty big eaters! I also would use a little more polenta/semolina next time, as this was almost more soupy than creamy. Leftovers had a better consistancy. I served it with a variety of sauces and accompaniments(pesto, bolognese, chicken sausage,and roasted tomatoes) and my guests loved it.
Ok, it is richer than rat poison but worth the calories. I’ve never been a huge fan of plain polenta. Cornmeal mush is cornmeal mush. This is an entirely different animal. You really don’t need a sauce or “condimento” at all.
Smooth silky mouth watering taste. My family enjoyed every grain of this version of polenta.