Baked Polenta Squares with Beet Cream

Steps to make

1. 1

   Preheat oven

   Preheat the oven to 400 °F.

2. 2

   Cook polenta

   5 min
   

   In a pot, bring to a boil 2 ⅓ cups water and stir in 1 ⅕ cups polenta. Let boil, stirring frequently, until the polenta has thickened and starts to bubble, about 3 minutes.

4. 3

   Add cream cheese, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper

   2 min
   

   Stir in 4 ounces cream cheese, 1 finely diced garlic clove, chopped rosemary, kosher salt to taste, and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Mix well to combine and remove from heat.

5. 4

   Prepare polenta for baking

   1 min
   

   Transfer the polenta to an 11x7-inch oiled baking dish and use a spatula to spread evenly.

6. 5

   Bake

   20 min
   

   Bake the polenta for about 20 minutes.

7. 6

   Prepare beet cream

   2 min
   

   Meanwhile, in a blender, puree 6 ounces chopped beets and 6 ½ ounces cream cheese. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

8. 7

   Serve

   

   To serve, slice the baked polenta into squares and arrange over the beet cream. Garnish with crumbled Gorgonzola and basil leaves.