3 slices lean bacon, chopped
2 onions, sliced thin
1 cup water
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 tsp dried crumbled sage
1/2 cup coarse ground cornmeal
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan
Directions
In a large saucepan, cook bacon until almost crisp. Remove the bacon
and take out all but 1 tbsp of the fat. Add the onions and cook until
softened but not browned. Transfer the onion to a bowl. To the pan
add the water, broth and sage and bring to a boil. Stirring
constantly, add the cornmeal, a little at a time. Cook over low heat,
stirring almost constantly, until it is thick and pulls away from the
sides of the pan, 20-25 minutes. Stir in the butter, 2 tbsp of the
Parmesan and half the onions. Spread in a 3 cup gratin dish. Mix the
bacon into the remaining onion mixture and spread on top of the
polenta. Sprinkle on the remaining Parmesan and bake in the middle
of a preheated 400 oven until the cheese is melted and just starting
to brown. This serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a side dish. Can be
doubled or tripled and can be made and assembled earlier in the day
and baked when ready to serve.
Posted on the Prodigy Food & Wine Board by Alyce Mantia
Servings: 1 servings
Baked Polenta With Bacon & Onions Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bread; Breads; Meat; Pork; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
Written cooking instructions as a concept can be tracked back into the far past, in fact as far back into history as the Egypt of the Pharoahs, and possibly even further than that. Interesting though that is, these, old cook books were just basic pictorial recipes for preparing food.
In an interesting twist, the most ancient recipe discovered, according to historians are some stone tablets in Sumerian which recount the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making those who drank it feel `wonderful`. During the time of the Romans a roman called Apicius created a few scripts detailing recipes prepared by the Romans. In his publication, Apicius recounts how the meals of wealthy Romans were divided into hors d`oeuvres, main course and dessert, known in latin as `Gustatio, Primae Mensae and Secundae Mensae`. This early Roman chef describes how the cooks of Roman times were skilled in the use of many different spices, including a few that are still present in modern kitchens for example thyme, fennel and dill. Moving our culinary historical trip onwards, we find a couple of cookery books which were published in the 1300s : a book called `Forme of Cury`, and another entitled `Curye on Inglish`. Perhaps surprisingly, these books are not about the curry that is served today, but rather recipes for the types of food prepared by the cooks of the rich people of the time. Later on, in the 15th century, people returning from the crusades brought us a variety of foods and herbs from Arab cuisine, such as parsley, basil and rosemary. These new foods and spices caused an increase in manuscripts on food, some of which are now in private collections. Over the next few hundred years, the families of Europe competed to lay on the most extravagent meals, and because of this cooks and their collection of recipes could command a high salary. Nevertheless, it wasn`t until the nineteenth century that formal cookery and recipe publications rose to prominence. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Farmer in the US, devoted much of their lives to assembling, testing, and recording recipes of the day. When we get to the 20th century, cookbooks were highly popular mostly as a result of higher levels of literacy, more free time and a general increase in wealth. The arrival of TV gave us TV cooks and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. Which brings us neatly up to date and the internet revolution, allowing everybody to access massive numbers of recipes like those on this recipe site. |
We hope you enjoy this Baked Polenta With Bacon & Onions recipe.
