Rachel Roddy’s Recipe For Leftover Polenta Biscuits | A Kitchen In Rome

This, then, was nan situation: it was Friday nighttime aft a agelong week, and having met a friend connected nan measurement location for a solid of wine, which arrived pinch crisps, taralli, barren roasted peanuts and capable brackish that we needed different glass, it seemed a bully thought to spell location and navigator polenta – nan long-stir benignant arsenic opposed to nan instant variety, though I ever person that successful nan cupboard, too. Another bully idea, which came to maine arsenic I pulled a caller packet from nan backmost of nan dresser and ignored nan flutter of mini wings, was to make much than capable polenta and move nan other into a Pyrex crockery while it was still hot, truthful it could group into a artifact to beryllium trim into slices and grilled nan adjacent day.

I’ve written astir polenta before; really nan connection is ancient and generic – referring to immoderate mushy crockery made from cereal flour and h2o – and how, aft its presence successful Europe successful nan 1600s, it became synonymous pinch crushed maize. There exists a world of different grades and milling, but, broadly speaking, erstwhile you bargain crushed maize (cornmeal) for polenta, you will person 2 options: finely crushed (which mightiness besides beryllium white) for a soft, bladed polenta, and coarsely ground, which will person glassy-looking grains and makes an fantabulous assemblage scrub and a harder, tastier polenta. The second besides takes overmuch longer to cook, thing from 40 minutes to respective hours, depending connected who (or which packet) you consult, though successful my acquisition an hr is almost ever enough, and thing beyond that is much a measurement of deepening nan flavour. Stirring is besides a matter of opinion, pinch immoderate saying it must beryllium constant, while others (hello, Anna Del Conte!) noting that aft 10 minutes, if nan power is debased enough, you tin successful truth time off nan cookware to be to different things, coming backmost each now and past to springiness it a strong, difficult stir.

So, having stirred my polenta intermittently until it looked for illustration a supermoon crossed pinch a boiling mud pool, I added food and served astir of it pinch fried mushrooms and slices of melty taleggio. We besides had different solid of vino and I forgot nan earlier bully idea, meaning that respective hours later I didn’t travel backmost to a neatly group artifact of polenta, but a cookware pinch a heavy yellowish crust. Not being nan first time, I do person a solution for this oversight: disregard nan cookware until nan morning, past lever retired nan bits and fry them pinch eggs. Another action besides involves waiting until nan greeting and then, utilizing your hands, digging and gouging retired nan yellowish remnants, weighing them, and squashing them pinch much butter, dried consequence and nuts.

Be warned: these patties stay delicate until they cool, truthful time off them connected nan tray until they are sturdy capable to move connected to a rack. They are champion described arsenic a biscuit crossed pinch a flapjack crossed pinch a breadstuff pudding, and it is simply a bully thought to person them pinch a basking drink. The correct thought would beryllium java pinch a changeable of grappa.

Leftover polenta biscuits

Makes About 15

400g leftover acold polenta
100g room somesthesia butter, diced
180g soft brownish sugar
100g raisins
100g prunes, dried fig aliases apricots, snipped into bits
100g chopped nuts
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
Optional fistful barren polenta aliases plain flour

Hands are champion for this. Working successful a bowl, break nan polenta into bits, past adhd nan food and compression it into nan polenta – it will look lumpy, but don’t worry. Add nan remaining ingredients isolated from nan barren polenta aliases flour, and compression again. The substance will beryllium rather soft, but not truthful overmuch that it can’t beryllium shaped; if it is very sloppy, adhd a small barren polenta aliases flour.

Line an oven tray pinch baking paper. Break disconnected small, plum-sized lumps of nan substance (making astir 15 successful all) and shape them first into balls and past into mini patties astir 5cm crossed x 5mm thick. Arrange nan biscuits connected nan tray, and property nan tops level pinch nan backmost of a fork.

Bake astatine 150C (130C fan)/300F/gas 2 for 45 minutes, aliases until somewhat golden. The biscuits will stay soft and delicate until they cool, truthful time off them connected nan tray until they are cool capable to move connected to a rack.