Ingredients
FOR THE POLENTA
4 cup cold water or vegetable stock
1 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
FOR THE SAUCE
1 cup stock or water
1 cup diced yellow onions
1 cup zucchini, sliced in 1/2 rounds
2 cup sliced asparagus, 1 lengths
3 cup sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp minced garlic
1 salt and pepper
1 goat cheese for garnish
Directions
Bring water to a boil in a medium-size saucepan and add the rosemary
and salt. Reduce the heat to a simmer and slowly add cornmeal,
whisking constantly. Cook over low heat, still stirring, until
mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the
Parmesan until melted. If you are planning to the polenta in a soft
state, you can keep it mushy by adding water and occasionally
stirring until the sauce is ready. If you plan to bake it pour the
polenta into a lightly oiled shallow baking dish, smooth top and let
cool for 1 hour, or up to 24 hours. When you are ready to bake the
o=polents, remove from refrigerator, run a knife around the inside of
the pan and turn on a flat surface. Cut into squares and place on a
lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 15
minutes or until the tops begins to brown lightly. For the sauce:
Bring a cup of vegetable stock to a simmer in a saucepan. Add the
onions and cook, covered, until they are transparent, about 15
minutes. Add zucchini, asparagus, and mushrooms and simmer uncovered
for 15 minutes. Add the tomatoes, parsley, garlic and salt and pepper
to taste. Cook another 5 minutes, Sppon mixture over bowl of soft
polenta or 2 squares of baked polenta. Garnish with goat cheese and
serve at once.
Nutritional info per serving: 238 cal; 13g pro, 38g carb, 6g fat(20%)
Exchanges: 2.7 vegetable, 1.6 bread,
.9 meat, .2 fat
Source: The Complete Vegetarian, Miami Herald, 1/18/96 format by Lisa
Crawford
Servings: 4 servings
Polenta With Vegetable Ragout Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bread; Breads; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
We can read the history of `recipes` far back into history, in truth as far back into history as pharonic Egypt, and maybe further still. Interesting though that is, sadly, these old cookbooks were just very basic hieroglyphic recipes for food preparation.
In fact, the most ancient recipe in existence, according to historians are a few clay tablets in ancient Sumerian which describe the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making people feel `wonderful`. Later on, in Roman times around 25BC a roman called Apicius wrote a number of scripts which described recipes enjoyed by wealthy roman citizens. In his works, Apicius describes how the meals of wealthy Romans were separated into appetizers, main course and desserts, something that is very familiar to us today. This early Roman chef describes how the cooks of Roman times used many different aromatic flavors, including a few that are still present in modern kitchens such as bay, fennel and dill. Later on in the 1400s, people returning from the crusades brought back many new foods and spices from Arab cooking, including coriander, basil and rosemary. These new foods and tastes led to a torrent in books on cookery, some of which are kept safe in private collections. For the next few years, the powerful and rich houses tried to serve the most extravagent meals, and as a consequence, the best cooks and their recipes were greatly in demand. However, it was during the nineteenth century that fine cooking and recipe publications became popular. Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Farmer in the US, devoted their lives to collating, trying out, and recording the recipes that were being prepared for the better households. By the advent of the twentieth century, cook books are increasing in popularity as a result of more people being able to read, people having more spare time and having more money. |
We hope you enjoy this Polenta With Vegetable Ragout recipe.
