A bit of Italian for Sunday. This is one of the dishes that interested me when I read the cookbook; The Vegeterranean recently. What was particularly intriguing was the method they used to create the polenta croutons but when it came down to it, I didn't actually try that out today not least because the recipe says it will serve 8 and I'm on my own now until next weekend.
A quick whirl around the web (I wish I had my copy of the Silver Spoon here) is enough to assure me that this is a very well established dish originating in the poorer parts of Italy but none the worse for that. It's filling, delicious and cheap, which are all good things.
In my garden I have an unusual vegetable, Good King Henry, a sort of chenopod that has been first gathered and then cultivated for millennia as a sustenance food crop. As a substitute you can use any greens in season, from spring cabbage to spinach, chard, callaloo, kale or foraged greens like nettle tops and wild sorrel, all you need to do is adjust the blanching time according to the quality of your vegetables. I also used the first garlic bulb of the new season. Lucky me.
Polenta Croutons:
75g quick cook polenta (or traditional polenta and cook it longer!)
600ml cold water.
Mix the polenta with the water, bring slowly to a simmer, stirring continuously and cook for 3 or 4 minutes, then turn out into a wetted shallow dish or tin so that it is between 1 and 2 cm thick. Smooth the top, allow to cool and firm up for an hour or two before the next step.
Turn the polenta sheet out onto a cutting board and make neat cubes of it. Drizzle a little olive oil over the top and gently turn the cubes about in it until they are coated in oil. Lay them out on a tray and bake in a hot oven for 30 minutes to an hour (depending on the oven temperature, they easy to cook at the same time as something else). They will turn golden and crisp up a bit on the edges.
Minestra:
Take a handful of greens and cut into large shreds. Blanch the greens in a large pan of salted boiling water until they are softened. This will be quite quickly for tender cabbage, much longer for tougher veg. like the Good King Henry. I gave mine five full minutes. Spinach should be wilted in its own washing water, no extra needed.
Chop some garlic, to your taste, and a chilli (I didn't have one and used some shreds of red pepper and some chilli flakes). In a frying pan cook the garlic and chilli in a splash of olive oil until just beginning to colour, add your drained greens and stir all around. Finally (for 1 or 2 people) add 300ml of tomato stock (see below) or another vegetable stock, even made of your favourite stock powder, and let everything simmer for a moment to combine the flavours. Taste for salt and add some if needed.
Put polenta cubes into a deep soup bowl and top with the soup and abundant greens.
Tomato Stock or Broth:
4 large tomatoes, overripe is o.k.
600ml water
1 small onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
Chop the tomatoes up, skin, seeds and all and put them in the stock pan with the water, chopped onion and salt. A few celery leaves or a sprig of lovage may be added but don't overdo the flavourings.
Bring to a simmer and let cook gently with the lid on the pan for twenty minutes or so. Blend with stick blender and strain through a fine sieve. Yield: about 1 litre.
No comments:
Post a Comment