Earlier this year when when my fiance decided to go on an insane diet that limited our consumption of comfort food for dinner, I made it my goal to find something I could cook that still worked for all his ‘rules’. One of our favorite dishes from my dad’s restaurant is an indulgent Mushroom Polenta dish that we devour. So, I dove into pinterest, did some digging into alternative ingredients and came up with this. A Cauliflower Millet Polenta recipe with sauteed mushrooms. Super simple, super delicious. And apparently, healthy.
It photographs pretty damn well, too. Also, a shout out to the cutest broth packaging I’ve ever seen…
Cauliflower & Millet Polenta with Sauteed Mushrooms // serves four
- 1 cup millet
- 1 cauliflower, riced in a food processor
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 6 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 shallots, minced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- Parmesan, thinly shaved
Steps:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Cut the cauliflower into small florets and add to a food processor in batches to get it to a rice-like consistency.
Heat a deep skillet over medium-high heat and add the millet. Toast the grains until they start to sizzle. Add the vegetable stock, salt, and half the garlic & shallot mixture. Let simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the cauliflower, butter and salt, and stir them into the mixture. Let simmer for another 10 minutes, then place the mixture in an oven proof pan and bake for 20-30 minutes.
For the mushrooms, slice up your selection and put into a pan over medium high heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Let cook for one minute, then add the remaining garlic & shallot mixture, as well as the thyme. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook until the mushrooms have released their juices and start to brown. About 8 minutes.
Top with shaved parmesan, a pinch of thyme, and enjoy!
Chef’s notes: In an effort to keep this dish healthy, we omitted lots of yummy things like butter and cheese that would make this dish a little more rich. For alternate versions you can try adding shaved parmesan to the mix before putting it in the oven to bake, or adding a bit of white wine while simmering. For an even heartier dish, try a mushroom ragu style topping like this one!
