garlic herb butter polenta
Sometimes you just get sick of the standard carbs - potatoes, pasta, rice. I always forget about polenta. This is a super-versatile side dish that works well with any protein. Switch up the herb butter (see recipe notes) to complement the flavors of your main dish.
Garlic Herb Butter Polenta
Ingredients
- Legal Sea Foods’ Garlic Herb Butter - or any herb-infused butter
- 3 cups cold milk
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper, preferably freshly ground
- 1 cup instant polenta
- ½ cup freshly-grated parmesan cheese, plus additional for garnish
Instructions
- Add the milk, water, salt, and pepper to a medium pot set over medium-high heat
- Slowly whisk in the instant polenta, avoiding clumps
- Allow the mixture to bubble then reduce heat to simmer, whisking regularly, for about 5 minutes or until the polenta reaches a thick, yet still manageable consistency (slightly thicker than Cream of Wheats)
- Remove pot from heat and whisk in 4T Garlic Herb Butter, followed by the grated parmesan
- Serve with a little more grated parmesan, extra dollop of Garlic Herb Butter, and a turn or two of fresh-cracked pepper
Notes
It's easy to make your own herb butter at home. Soften a stick of unsalted butter on the counter. Chop the top off of a whole head of garlic, place in a foil, and drizzle olive oil over the top. Bake in a preheated oven for about an hour and let cool. Zest a lemon. Mince some parsley or other herbs as you please. Once you're ready to make the herb butter, squeeze out some of the roasted garlic cloves to taste and mince. Use either a hand mixer or stand mixer to combine the butter, garlic, herbs, and lemon zest to taste. Add a squeeze of lemon and salt and pepper to taste.
