Soft polenta with white beans, mushrooms and spinach

Ingredients

0 of 16 out on the counter

• 2½ cups whole-grain yellow cornmeal (stone-ground)
• 10 cups water
• ¾ tsp salt, for the polenta
• 1 tbsp olive oil, stirred into the polenta
• 4 tbsp reduced-fat grated Parmesan
• 2 tbsp olive oil, for the topping
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbsp no-salt-added tomato paste
• 1 can (15 oz) no-salt-added white beans (cannellini), drained and rinsed
• 5 cups loosely packed baby spinach
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• ¼ tsp salt, for the topping
• ½ tsp ground black pepper

All set! Everything is out. Time to bake.

Method

1. 1Bring the 10 cups of water and the ¾ tsp salt to a boil in a heavy pot that holds at least 5 quarts. At 5,430 ft water boils near 203 °F, so it looks lively a little sooner than you expect.
2. 2Turn the heat to medium. Whisk in the cornmeal a handful at a time, letting it fall in a thin stream, and keep whisking for 1 minute so no lumps form.
3. 3Turn the heat to low and set the lid ajar. Cook 35 to 40 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon every 5 minutes and scraping the bottom. The house runs this about a quarter longer than sea level because simmered food is slower here (our kitchen practice: CSU's quarter-longer rule is for meat).
4. 4While the polenta cooks, heat the 2 tbsp topping oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Cook the onion 5 minutes, then add the mushrooms and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until the liquid is gone and the edges brown.
5. 5Stir in the garlic powder, thyme, tomato paste and pepper for 1 minute. Add the beans and cook 3 minutes, until hot.
6. 6Add the spinach by the handful and turn it until wilted, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the vinegar and the ¼ tsp salt.
7. 7The polenta is done when the grains are soft with no gritty bite and it slides off the spoon in a slow ribbon. Off the heat, stir in the 1 tbsp olive oil and the Parmesan, cover, and let it stand 5 minutes.
8. 8Spoon the polenta into six bowls and top each with one-sixth of the bean and mushroom mix. Leftovers: refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90 °F). Reheat to 165 °F with 1 tbsp of water per bowl, stirring.