Polenta with Mushrooms in Madeira Sauce

Before I started reading a lot of food blogs, I had never even heard of polenta. I’ve been wanting to try it for a long time, now, not only because I love corn, creamed corn, cornbread, and any other like flavors, but because I hate having heard of something but never tried it :) I found this recipe on the Williams Sonoma website, and I knew right away that I had to make it. Mushrooms have been one of my favorite foods lately, and it just seemed like they would pair so well with polenta. And I was also curious about madeira, a fortified wine that I had never tried. In the end, I absolutely adored this meal. The polenta, mushrooms, Madeira sauce, and Parmesan cheese all tasted so good together when I got a little bit of each on my spoon. I particularly enjoyed the sauce, which was so flavorful. It uses chicken broth, but you could also substitute vegetable broth to keep this a vegetarian meal. And the Parmesan cheese mixed into the polenta and sprinkled on top of the mushrooms was just delicious and really finished off the dish. I really loved this meal and look forward to making it again.

Polenta with Mushrooms in Madeira Sauce
Source: Williams Sonoma

I cut this recipe in half and made a few changes. Here is the recipe as I made it.

3 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
1 cup polenta (corn grits)
Extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 10 oz package baby portabella mushrooms, roughly chopped into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
1/3 cup Madeira
1 cup chicken broth (or vegetable, to keep the recipe vegetarian)
Black pepper, to taste

1. In a medium-sized sauce pan, bring a pot of water to a boil, and add the salt. Stirring continuously, add the polenta in a thin stream until incorporated. Continue stirring to prevent lumps from forming. Reduce the heat so the mixture bubbles occasionally. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom and sides of the pan frequently, until the polenta is thick and creamy, 35-40 minutes.

2. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting, and add 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, mixing well. Keep the polenta warm over very low heat.

3. In a saute pan, heat a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Add the mushrooms and thyme, and cook until all of the liquid released from the mushrooms has evaporated, approximately 10 minutes. Add the Madeira and cook, stirring, until the liquid is almost evaporated. Add the broth, and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Spoon the polenta into bowls. Spoon the mushroom and broth mixture on top of the polenta, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.