Polenta Bites with Goat Cheese, Sundried Tomatoes & Pesto
Prep Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 10 mins
Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 2⅔ cups whole milk
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 sprig fresh thyme
- 1 clove garlic, peeled & crushed
- 1 cup instant polenta
- ⅓ cup olive oil (more or less, for frying)
- 2 ounces goat cheese
- ⅓ cup sundried tomatoes, packed in oil (drained & cut into small pieces)
- Jar Basil Pesto
- sea salt
- Lightly oil a 13x9-inch baking pan. Bring the first 4 ingredients to simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat; simmer 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the herbs and garlic. Whisk in the cornmeal in a slow steady stream; return to boil. Reduce heat to low. Simmer until the polenta is very thick, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Turn polenta out into prepared pan; spread to ½-inch thick, even layer. Let it cool completely. When the polenta is cool, use a 1 to a 1 ½-inch round cutter to cut out about 30 polenta rounds.
- Pour about ⅓ cup olive oil into a large nonstick skillet to coat the bottom; heat over medium-high heat. Saute the polenta rounds until they are lightly browned, about 1 minute on each side; transfer to paper towels to drain.
- Top each polenta round with a small amount of pesto, a chunk of goat cheese and sundried tomato. Finish them with a sprinkle of sea salt. Serve warm or at room temperature. Buon Appetito!
Recipe Notes:
