Sage Polenta with Fresh Corn

We got four ears of corn with our farm share this week, and we also got a bunch of sage from the farmers' market. We were racking our brains for a creative way to use them both. Suddenly, my husband had the idea to combine them in a polenta. He always told me that he didn't like polenta, but he found a recipe that sparked his curiosity.

I have never made polenta. I always thought it was fussy like risotto, and since my husband swore that he didn't like it, I never gave it a try. It's actually pretty easy. For basic polenta, just combine some water and cornmeal and cook for about 30 minutes stirring frequently. We jazzed it up with some sage and fresh corn. The results were delicious. It had a really creamy texture with hints of Parmesan cheese and sage with a crunch and sweetness from the fresh corn. We are totally sold and are ready to make polenta all the time. Here is the recipe:

Sage Polenta with Fresh Corn
small onion, finely chopped
clove of garlic, finely chopped
4 ears of corn, kernels cut off the cob
oil
5 c water
1 c corn meal
3 T sage, finely chopped
4 T butter
1/2 c Parmesan cheese
pinch of salt and pepper

Heat a heavy sauce pan and coat with oil. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add garlic and corn and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Bring water to a boil and gradually add the corn meal stirring with a whisk. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the sage, butter, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Mix until smooth. Serve with extra Parmesan cheese.

We ate our polenta topped with sauteed chicken breast, oven roasted tomatoes and garlic. The combination was awesome. More on the oven roasted tomatoes in the next post.