One Of The Best Side Dish Ever!

Roman Gnocchi 

Today I made one of the easiest side dishes around.  It’s different and we don’t always have it but not because it is difficult more because I attempt to change up my side dishes to keep things interesting.  I find that even if you are cooking the regular, every week proteins you can add an amazing side dish and it changes the whole meal.  This side dish is fun, yummy and it can actually be served as an entrée with a salad for either a brunch, lunch or dinner.  

This side dish also pairs with a lot of different salads and proteins so you can basically have it with anything, which is what you are looking for as a home cook. 

You only need a few simple ingredients to make this dish; shredded cheese (normally I use mozzarella, and parmesan – but we are in the middle of social distancing and you may only have at home other types of cheese so use what you have – but mozzarella and parmesan are the best to use when you do go to do a grocery run), tomato sauce (again I use the same one I use for my pizzas; passata, olive oil and garlic – but use what you have), and pre-cooked polenta (if you have no idea what that is, its corn meal and I’m sure you’ve seen it in the grocery store, it’s that tube of yellow stuff). Even though I’m someone who believes that its just as easy to make real yummy food as fast as it is to open a processed package of something, I do on occasion use some packaged food and turn it into something amazing.  Polenta is one of them.  And in all honesty some food just takes too long on the average day and I like most of us, just don’t have time to spend slaving over the stove, and then letting it cool and set, ya, not happening!

This dish is super and I mean super easy.  

*Shred your cheese (if it’s not shredded), 

*make your sauce (which takes a few seconds), 

*open the package of polenta and slice it into disks. (you can slice them as thick or thin as you like, I prefer thinner, but most of my family like them a bit thicker) 

fried and ready for cheese & sauce

Now this is the most time-consuming step…ready…..in a frying pan add enough oil (olive or canola) to coat the bottom of the pan.  Once it is heated, add the slices of polenta.  Fry each side until crispy (note: do not put food in cold oil, it will absorb into the food and make it gross, always heat your oil before you cook!).  This can take a while these little suckers take their time to get brown and crispy but trust me keep crisping them until they are nice and brown on the outside.  It may take about ½ an hour.  But trust me it is worth it! 

Once you have them all browned and crispy, place them in a baking dish or cookie tray/sheet pan, top with the sauce and cheese (in the photos below you will see I had some basil so threw that on as well) and then put them under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and starts to brown!  

sauced with parmesan

add some basil

ready for the oven

ready to EAT!

And voila best side dish/brunch idea/lunch/entrée you have ever had! Enjoy!