“I KNOW HOW TO BOIL WATER; I JUST DON'T KNOW WHEN IT'S DONE": Polenta Pepper Pie

Monday, February 4, 2013

Polenta Pepper Pie

2 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 pound bulk Italian Sausage
5 or 6 thinly sliced green pepper rings
1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper
1/3 cup finely shredded carrot
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup grated Romano Cheese
1/2 cup shredded provolone cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium saucepan bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil.
Meanwhile, combine remaining 1 cup water, 1/2 tsp. salt and cornmeal together in a separate bowl. Slowly pour cornmeal mixture into boiling water, stirring constantly using a wooden spoon. Cook and stir till thick and bubbly. Continue cooking over low heat 5 minutes more or till very thick, stirring frequently.
Grease an 8 inch cake pan and spoon half the polenta mixture into it. Cover the surface of the polenta with a waxed paper circle, and using your fingers, press the waxed paper to pat polenta into an even layer on the bottom of the pan. Remove waxed paper and place it in the bottom of another ungreased 8 inch pan. spoon the other half of the polenta in this pan and repeat the pressing even technique using another waxed paper circle. Set the cake pan aside. Place the first pan (the greased one) in the oven and bake, uncovered for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cook finely crumbled sausage, chopped green pepper, carrot and onion till sausage is brown and vegetables are tender. Drain well. Stir in tomato paste and Romano Cheese.
Spoon the sausage mixture evenly over the baked polenta. Carefully invert the unbaked polenta layer on top of the sausage mixture. Put back in oven and bake for 20 minutes. Top with green pepper slices and provolone cheese; bake for 10 minutes more or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing into 6 wedges to serve.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

This is definitely a favorite of mine and something different to serve when special family members or friends come for a visit.

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Natural Resource

Beginnings

It was tradition in my family that soup was served almost every Sunday. There were only a handful of Sundays where soup wasn't part of the menu. On those days, we probably took a trip to Rivesville, West Virginia to visit with my Grandma, who usually had her own pot of soup on, and homemade bread to sink our teeth into. Sundays started with Mass, and after returning home, we would have breakfast. One of my favorite morning dishes was palachintas (yum). Mom would already have soup on the stovetop, and between noon and 2 o'clock it was time for the "soup feast." You could tell time at our house by the Sunday meal plan. A lot of them were based on the time of the football game, or other sporting event. Soup was always served as the noon time meal, followed by a hearty meatloaf, roast beef, stuffed cabbage, chicken paprikas, or the like, at suppertime (usually around 4 o’clock). It seemed like all we did on Sunday was eat and relax. You would wonder how you could be hungry for supper at 4 or 5 o’clock. Amazingly, you were. There were times I would remember that if there wasn’t enough roast beef to make you content, Mom would give you a slice of bread on your plate and cover it with gravy (Gravy Bread). What an added feast we thought we were getting. Little did we know, there probably wasn't enough meat for seconds, and who cared, because there was always plenty of gravy for that "oh so special" Gravy Bread. I really don’t remember a lot of desserts. I know we probably had them from time to time, but even if there were, I don’t know how one would find, or want to find, the room to fit it in. Well, all this talk is making me hungry. Go turn on the water and let’s get started!

Dedication

I dedicate this website to the 4 best cooks I know: My mother, who nourished me from the day of my first breath, both physically and spiritually; my mother-in-law, introducing me to her family favorites and customs; my husband’s grandmother, who had a unique, physical and verbal way of teaching me all her different techniques, to pass on traditional dishes; and last, and foremost, my heavenly mother, Mary, who is always by my side guiding me with spiritual intervention every step, and ingredient, of the way. It is with a deep love of my heritage that I also dedicate this collection of recipes to all the cooks who are just starting out and continuing the tradition of using recipes that are "family recipes." I hope that this website will serve to preserve some of my "family recipes" and to kindle an interest in traditional cooking among the younger families in a not always traditional way.

Enjoy!
With much love, Beve