011 / 75 · Centerpieces with a twist
Polenta Patchwork with Roast Roots
8 rectangles of baked polenta, each with roasted roots and onion · Active 35 min · Cook 50 min · Total 1 hr 35 min
Print recipe · PDFA polenta base becomes a small edible serving platform for a patchwork of roots. The vegetables roast separately, so beet colors the plate deliberately instead of turning every ingredient pink.
Keep the colors apart until serving
Roast beet on one side of the tray and carrot on the other, with onion between them. Separate turning spoons help retain their colors. Their arrangement is optional; the important point is giving every portion a share of each vegetable.
A slab that can be portioned
Egg and cheese help the polenta hold a broad rectangle after baking. It still needs a short rest before cutting. Serve with a broad spatula rather than claiming the warm pieces can be eaten as crisp crackers.
Ingredients
- 180 g quick-cooking polenta: choose a product whose full packet method takes 5–10 minutes and requires 720–840 ml water for 180 g grain
- 720 ml water (3 cups), plus up to 120 ml extra only if its packet requires it
- 80 g/3 oz cheddar, grated
- 2 large eggs, 100 g without shells
- 20 g butter (about 1½ tablespoons), divided 5 g dish and 15 g polenta
- 200 g/7 oz peeled beet, cut into 1 cm/⅜ in cubes
- 250 g/9 oz peeled carrots, cut into 1 cm cubes
- 200 g/7 oz onion, cut into 1 cm pieces
- 30 ml olive oil (2 tablespoons), for vegetables
- 30 ml apple cider vinegar (2 tablespoons)
- 15 g Dijon mustard (about 1 tablespoon)
- 3 g fine salt (½ teaspoon), divided 2 g polenta and 1 g vegetables
- 0.5 g black pepper (¼ teaspoon)
Set out
Oven, 23 × 33 cm/9 × 13 in shallow baking dish, at least 2 L usable capacity, 40 × 30 cm/16 × 12 in usable roasting tray, Saucepan and whisk, Two bowls, Knife and board, Spoons and broad spatula, Food thermometer, Foil, Shallow storage containers and refrigerator
Allergens
Milk, Egg, Mustard. Check labels and substitutions.
Make it
- Heat the oven to 400°F/200°C. Grease the baking dish with 5 g butter. Toss beet, carrot and onion with all 30 ml oil, 1 g salt and the pepper. Keep the three vegetables in separate areas of the roasting tray, in one layer. Roast 30–35 minutes, turning once, until their centers are tender.
- Meanwhile bring 720 ml water to a boil. Whisk in polenta and 2 g salt, then cook for its full packet time, stirring as directed. Add only the listed reserve water if the packet requires it or the grains remain hard; they must be fully cooked, not merely thickened.
- Off the heat, mix 15 g butter and all the cheese into the polenta. Cool 10 minutes, then beat in both eggs. Spread in the prepared dish. Bake 20–25 minutes until set and 165°F/74°C in several central places.
- Mix vinegar and mustard, then toss with all the cooked onion. Rest the polenta 10 minutes and cut 8 equal rectangles. Divide beet, carrot and dressed onion evenly among them, placing the colors alongside each other rather than mixing into a pink heap.
Bring it
Pack the 8 topped rectangles in a rigid shallow tray. Maintain 140°F/60°C or above for hot transport, or chill and carry at 40°F/4°C or below. Uncontrolled travel and display share 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C.
Finish at the gathering
For chilled portions, request a 350°F/180°C oven for 25–35 minutes, covered initially, until the center of each reaches 165°F/74°C. Bring the broad spatula; the host does not need to plate a complicated last-minute pattern.
Make it yours
Arrange the 8 pieces as two rows of four for a winter buffet, or serve each as a small vegetable first course. Leave an empty margin around the platter rather than adding unmeasured decorative food.
Ingredient labels
Butter and cheese contain milk; eggs and Dijon are used. Check the polenta and cheese labels for additional ingredients and cross-contact notices.
A useful detail
Choose a quick-polenta product whose full 180 g packet method uses 720–840 ml total water; a product requiring more water or longer cooking is unsuitable for this stated batch. Vegetables roast while the polenta is cooked, cooled and baked. The 95-minute total includes preparation, these overlapping stages and the final rest; actual tenderness still controls.
Another way
- Use 200 g prepared sweet potato in place of beet; roast until tender.
- Use 80 g mature Gouda instead of cheddar; the milk allergen remains.
Keep it well
Refrigerate shallow portions promptly at 40°F/4°C or below and use within 3 days. Retain the original cooking date if components were made earlier, and follow the Bring it handling limits. Reheat to 165°F/74°C; the base softens somewhat under the vegetables.