For New Year’s Day we traveled down to Long Island, New York to visit my (Pete’s) side of the family. (We spent Christmas in Ithaca with Kelli’s family.) Such are the benefits of now living in the Hudson Valley, where family is a mere drive away, compared to Colorado when a four-hour flight loomed.
For dinner, we needed to accommodate many dietary needs: gluten-free for the Bronskis, dairy-free for Kelli (Charlotte has proven very sensitive to dairy), and vegetarian for my brother’s girlfriend. This dish of corn polenta with roasted winter vegetables really fit the bill and left everyone satisfied! (The meat eaters among us paired it with spiral-cut roasted ham. The vegetarians paired it with lentils to make it a complete and satisfying entree. Pairing it with beans would also work well.)
Polenta
Makes about 4 servings
Ingredients
4 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup cornmeal
6 cloves roasted garlic, mashed
Salt and pepper to taste
Steps
1. In a medium-large saucepot, bring the water and olive oil to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer.
2. Add the cornmeal slowly, stirring constantly with a whisk (to prevent lumps from forming).
3. Stir in the garlic.
3. Cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until about as thick as oatmeal.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Vinaigrette
Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp dried rosemary
Salt and pepper
Steps
1. Combine all ingredients.
Roasted Vegetables
Ingredients
8 cups winter vegetables (sweet potato, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, onion, carrot), chopped into equal-sized one-inch pieces
Vinaigrette (see above)
Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 375 deg F.
2. Toss the vegetables in the vinaigrette (a large zip top or produce bag works well for this).
3. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet or pan, and roast for one hour, until the vegetables are very soft.
Serve the vegetables over the polenta. (For the photo above, I plated the veggies next to the polenta so you can better see the finished texture of the polenta.)
Enjoy!
– Pete