Does anything smell better than mushrooms cooking in butter? I don’t think so. Polenta is what you get when a Native American meets an Italian. It’s a corn meal mash that is both inexpensive and filling. I use a fine grain cornmeal (sometimes called “grits”) which cooks up nice in about ten minutes – but cooking times for Polenta can vary so it is best to follow the package instructions. This recipe does take a little work but it’s worth it.
If you don’t want to cook with butter then you should not make this recipe.
Ingredients
3 cups of cold water
1 cup of cornmeal grits
½ teaspoon of salt
3 tablespoons of butter
1 large (or 2 small) zucchini
1 – 8 ounce package of white mushrooms
1 red pepper
4 Eggs
Garlic Powder
Dried Oregano
Salt
Ground Black Pepper
Zhoug! (see recipe)
To Make the Polenta
In a medium pot combine the water, salt, and 1 tablespoon of butter. Put it on a stove burner and bring to a rolling boil. Put the one cup of grits into a shallow bowl.
Spit out your gum. Now, using a fork (or whisk) get the boiling water going into a good swirl – clockwise.* Keep spinning the water while at the same time gently sprinkling in the cornmeal, a little at a time (it should sound like light rain on a tin roof), until its all in there. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer the mash on low for about 10 minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat, cover and set aside.
To Make the Veg
Dice up the red pepper. Slice the mushrooms. Slice the zucchini down the middle lengthwise then cut into half-moons. In a large frying pan add the two remaining tablespoons of butter and bring a medium heat up under it. When the butter is just about melted add all the veg at once. Shake some garlic powder and dried oregano over it and add salt and black pepper to taste. Fry over a medium heat, stirring frequently, until the zucchini appears somewhat translucent (about 6 or 7 minutes).
Remove the pan from the heat and set aside (uncovered).
To Make Olive Oil Cooked Eggs
In a non-stick fry pan add one good glug of olive oil and heat it up on medium heat
(about 1 minute). Gently crack an egg into the pan and let it fry for a minute until it starts to set. Tilt the pan slightly so that the hot oil pools. Using a large tablespoon, carefully scoop the oil over the top of the egg; keep scooping until a thin white film appears on the yolk. Remove the egg from the pan and set it on a warm plate. Make the other three eggs the same way.
Assembly
Fluff the Polenta with a fork. Mound some Polenta into the center of a shallow soup bowl. Top it with the Vegetables and then gently place the fried egg on top of the veg. Serve with a thimble of Zhoug! on the side.
Serves 4. My cost approx. $ 5.35 – about $ 1.34 per serving.
* Always clockwise – never counterclockwise. I hope I don’t have to explain that. GMN