PW's Creamy Polenta and GP's Firecracker Spinach

Considering GYM has been holed up in bed with a respiratory infection, I felt a bit freer in the kitchen this week. Tuesdays are gym (as in the workout, not the boyfriend) days, so I also wanted something quick, and once again it was raining, so I wanted something comforting and hearty.

I regularly read The Pioneer Woman, through both her tweets and her blog, and it just so happened that she posted Creamy Polenta today. Since I love corn-associated dishes (strange how I won't touch corn syrup, though)I decided this was a perfect base for my meal. And, always needing my iron, spinach seemed like the natural pairing.

Creamy Polenta--nearly straight from Pioneer Woman

1 cup cornmeal/polenta/grits
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 Tablespoons Butter
4 oz goat cheese (or in my world, feta, as I thought I had some soft goat cheese but alas I misremembered the contents of the cheese drawer

Bring 4 1/2 cups water to a boil (I have never used this much for polenta but wow did it make a difference. Use lots of water!). Add cornmeal to the water slowly, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir in butter and goat cheese. Check seasonings, and add salt to taste. Don't add hot sauce or chili flakes, as those are coming...

Firecracker Spinach, per me, GP

1 bunch spinach, triple washed
1 tsp olive oil/butter combo
Hot chili oil
Red pepper flakes

So this isn't really a recipe so much as an "add things that are nearby and oh crap we are out of olive oil" mishmash that turned out wonderfully. Heat a cast iron skillet (adds even more iron!) over medium heat. Add the olive oil/butter when hot. Squeeze as much water out of the spinach as possible before adding to the pan. You might find out you don't have enough oil. This is when you accidentally turn a bottle of hot chili oil upside down in the pan...after adding your pepper flakes. Seriously, though, you need to make this mistake. Add about a tablespoon of the oil to the wilting spinach and stir in some flakes. Firecracker!

Top a cup of the cheesy polenta with the greens.

In keeping with the theme of accidental pleasures, I randomly picked a Belgian Strong Ale, Poperings Hommelbier, to accompany. I figured GYM was sick and couldn't drink much, so I should choose one of the smaller bottles living in our boxes. Surprisingly, I was thrilled with the way that the spicy spinach brought out the subtle apple flavors in the beer.

(Leftover polenta is excellent with simple black beans and Yumm sauce)

Warm Up Breakfast

Don't get me wrong. There are some positives to being unemployed. Like not having to wake up early when adjusting to Daylight Savings Time. Being able to sit and watch the snowflakes fall rather than try to manuever through the streets. And the ability to make Vanilla Brown Sugar Breakfast Polenta to stay warm on such occasions.

I took the Breakfast Polenta recipe right off the adorable Joy the Baker blog. I love Joy and want to make nearly everything that she creates. I'd never thought of having polenta for breakfast before (I'm fairly sure most people haven't) but, to me at least, it was tastier than oatmeal or cream of wheat. Or even plain ol grits.

Here's what you need:
1 cup polenta
3 cups cold water
2 cups milk
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup brown sugar

Here's what you do:
Combine the polenta (I use Bob's Red Mill Grits, also known as Polenta) and 1 cup water in a small bowl; set aside.
Add the remaining cups of water and the milk to a small saucepan and bring to a low boil. Then add the polenta/water mix and whisk to combine thoroughly. At this point, turn down the heat and let the mixture simmer until the polenta has thickened into a porridge-like state. This could take anywhere from 10-40 minutes, depending on how your polenta is cut and apparently the day of the week, as I've made this twice and the first time it took about 14 minutes and today about 25.
When the polenta is nice and thick, add the vanilla and the brown sugar. Pour into bowls and serve, perhaps with a dusting of more brown sugar on top. Or cinnamon. Or be creative.

Here's how it looks:


With the leftovers, Joy suggests putting them into a loaf pan lined with plastic wrap and sticking them in the fridge for tomorrow morning, when you then make fried breakfast polenta. Unfortunately, the last time I tried this the polenta completely fell apart. I'll try again tomorrow and report back.

But now, back to the job hunt--because ingredients cost money, and because I need a proper camera rather than my cellphone.