Herby Polenta Slice with Caramelised Onion + Feta (serves 6)
Ingredients:
260g polenta
1500ml veg stock
30g dill
30g tarragon
30g chervil
30g basil
3tbsp thyme
150g feta
3 red onions
2 red peppers
100g cherry tomatoes
avocado or olive oil for roasting
salt and pepper
Make this dish about 2 hours before you intend to eat it, it needs time to cool!
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and prepare the veg topping. Slice the top and bottom off the onions, peel and slice in half, then chop into 1cm slices top to bottom. Half the peppers, take out the stalk and seeds then chop 1cm slices top to bottom. Put these into a tray with the cherry tomatoes, mix with oil and a sprinkle of salt + pepper, then roast for about 20 - 25 mins until everything is starting to brown. You want it to be soft, cooked and just starting to turn golden so everything is nicely caramelised.
Whilst the veg is in the oven, first prepare the herbs by chopping to a medium/ small size, then make the polenta. Prepare the veg stock and get a large saucepan ready on the hob. Pour the boiling stock into the pan and turn onto a low - medium heat. Using a whisk, and whisking constantly (this is very important or the polenta will go lumpy) gradually pour in the polenta and continue whisking until it is combined. Once combined, keep stirring the polenta (you may find a wooden spoon more useful now), until it is a bit thicker. It is done when it is still runny but comes away from the sides of the pan as you stir about 5 - 7 minutes. Turn off the heat and season adding salt and pepper to taste, being careful as it is hot! Go easy on the salt as it can quickly be too much. Once seasoned, add the herbs and stir to combine.
Line a small pyrex or oven proof dish with baking paper leaving a good inch over the top as you might need this to help lift the polenta out of the dish. Pour in the polenta and when the veggies are done, place them in a sieve to remove the liquid from the tomatoes (otherwise this will make the polenta soggy), then spread over the top leaving 1cm around the edge for it to bubble and brown. Sprinkle some thyme and black pepper over the top then put into the oven for 20minutes.
After 20minutes, remove from the oven and add the feta to the top (if you add it too early it will brown too quickly). Then put back in the oven and bake for another 20minutes until the sides start to bubble and brown - the polenta will still be runny, it sets when it cools down.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely - slightly warm is ok but ideally you want room temp, this can take unto around 2 hours - or longer if you doubt the recipe and use a bigger dish.
Eating the same day is best and serve with a nice salad! For vegan, just omit the feta.
