Creamy Polenta with Sautéed Apples, Mushrooms, & Calvados

Name: Creamy Polenta with Sautu00e9ed Apples, Mushrooms, &u00a0Calvados
Prep time: 25 min
Total time: 100 min
Yield: 6 Servings
Ingredients: 1u00bd cups coarse polenta; 1u00bd cups vegetable or chicken broth; 3 cups water; 1 to 2 tablespoons butter; Pinch salt (about u00bd teaspoon); 2 small Gala apples, peeled, cored, and cut into u00bc-inch cubes; 8 ounces shiitake mushrooms; 2 small shallots (about 4 ounces total), finely chopped; 1 large garlic clove, minced; 3 to 4 sage leaves, chopped; Pinch fresh marjoram; u00bc cup Calvados; 1u00bd to 2 cups vegetable or chicken broth; u00bd cup heavy cream; 1 tablespoon butter; 2 tablespoons sunflower oil; 1 to 2 tablespoons flour; Salt and freshly ground black pepper

By Leslie Blythe Apples, Mushrooms Sautéing, Simmering

December 11, 2020

This Creamy Polenta with Sautéed Apples, Mushrooms, & Calvados is a warm comforting dish for a chilly night.
Calvados is apple cider that has been distilled into Brandy, which highlights the sautéed apples and mushrooms.
Polenta is made from cornmeal and is gluten-free. However, if you’re making this for someone with Celiac disease, be sure that the polenta you buy is labeled “gluten-free” so that you can be sure there hasn’t been any cross-contamination with wheat.

Prep: 25 mins
Cook: 1 hr 15 mins
Yields: 6 Servings

Ingredients

For the polenta

1½ cups coarse polenta

1½ cups vegetable or chicken broth

3 cups water

1 to 2 tablespoons butter

Pinch salt (about ½ teaspoon)

For the sauce

2 small Gala apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch cubes

8 ounces shiitake mushrooms

2 small shallots (about 4 ounces total), finely chopped

1 large garlic clove, minced

3 to 4 sage leaves, chopped

Pinch fresh marjoram

¼ cup Calvados

1½ to 2 cups vegetable or chicken broth

½ cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons sunflower oil

1 to 2 tablespoons flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1Prepare the polenta. In a medium pot or saucepan, bring the broth, water and salt to a boil. Whisk in the polenta. When the water starts boiling again, reduce the heat to low and keep on stirring for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the polenta bubbles assume a rhythm of their own. At this point, you can let the polenta bubble without heavy supervision, for about 45 minutes. Pay a visit to the pot to stir from time to time (a bit more often towards the end of cooking). Remove the polenta from the stove, add the butter and mix well.

2 Make the sauce. Cut the mushroom caps into ¼-inch cubes. If you are using stems, make sure that you cut them into really small pieces, as they are tougher than the caps.

3 In a medium saucepan, heat about a tablespoon of sunflower oil over medium heat. Add in the shiitakes and cook for about 3 minutes, until browned and soft. Remove the shiitakes from the pan, and keep them in a medium-sized bowl. In the same pan, heat a tablespoon of butter, add the apples, and cook over moderately high heat until browned, for about 3 minutes. Make sure not to overcook the apples. Add the apples to the mushrooms.

4 Deglaze the pan with Calvados and pour the sauce over the apples and mushrooms.  In a separate pan, heat a tablespoon of sunflower oil, add the shallots, and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, until fragrant. Add the apple and mushroom mixture, sage, and marjoram. Sprinkle with about a tablespoon of flour, mix well, and pour in the broth. Simmer for a couple of minutes over medium heat, until the sauce thickens (if needed you can always add another pinch of flour, or if the sauce is too thick a bit more broth). Add in the heavy cream, and simmer for another minute or two. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper.

5 Pour the polenta onto individual plates. Spoon the sauce on top and garnish with herbs. Serve warm.

Recipe from Food52 by QUEENSASHY, October 2, 2013.

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