Simple Fare, Fairly Simple

Can I see a show of hands of people who know what polenta is? Cornmeal boiled in water, right? No big deal. Cornbread's cousin. So when I presented this dish to IT Guy, I made the mistake of using the word "polenta". He called it "different". I had to laugh a little bit. When I told him what it was, he totally changed his tune. Isn't it funny when something you eat all the time, then all of a sudden it's called by a different name, or presented in an unfamiliar fashion, we turn our noses up at it. So after IT Guy familiarized himself with polenta, they were good friends. This is a delicious dish. To me..the polenta with the sauce or gravy on top, tasted just like the dressing and gravy we make at Thanksgiving at our house. I'm sure it was the corn taste shining through...but in short...we all enjoyed it a lot!! And the best part? it was EASY!

Italian Meatballs with Polenta Casserole

1 pound ground beef
1 egg
¼ cup bread crumbs
¼ cup milk
½ cup finely diced onion
Salt

Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Shape into golf ball –sized meatballs.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Drizzle the pan with some olive oil, then place meatballs in skillet to brown on all sides. About 10 minutes.

Slice polenta into 12 slices and place in the bottom of a 9x13 inch greased casserole dish. Place meatballs on polenta and set aside.

1 can golden mushroom soup
¾ cup water
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium sized bowl combine soup with the rest of the ingredients. Stir until well blended then pour over meatballs and polenta.

Bake in a 350 oven for about 45 minutes. Sprinkle with ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese. Allow to set for 5 minutes before serving.



Here's what you need for the meatballs.



Mix the ground beef, egg, diced onion, 
bread crumbs, milk and salt together. 
Form your meatballs.



Cook them in a heated skillet 
with a little olive oil for 
about 10 minutes or so. 
Nicely browned all around.




Slice the polenta into 1/2 inch slices 
and put them in your casserole dish.



Then arrange your browned 
meatballs on top of the polenta.



Mix up your sauce/gravy....



Then pour it over the polenta/meatballs.



Bake it up then sprinkle it with some parmesan cheese!