Dinner Tonight: Italian Summer Squash Polenta Bake

I was in the bulk section at the grocery store yesterday and noticed the corn meal was 79 cents a pound, and I thought to myself: polenta! So right there I searched for “polenta” in my Allrecipes DinnerSpinner app and this yummilicious meal popped up.

I altered the recipe slightly based on what I already had on hand, plus I added chicken to make it a one-dish meal. Here’s how I did it:

Ingredients:
3 carrots, sliced
2 small zucchinis, sliced
a bunch of sliced mushrooms
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can stewed tomatoes w/ basil
1/2 can tomato paste
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 pinch garlic salt
ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 chicken breasts, saute’d and cut into bite sized pieces
1 (18 ounce) package prepared polenta*

*I started out by making my own polenta, and here’s how I did that.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Saute carrots, zucchini, mushrooms, onion and bell pepper in a large saucepan with a small amount of olive oil. Season with garlic salt and pepper. Saute vegetables for approximately 5 minutes and pour in stewed tomatoes & tomato paste. Stir, cover and simmer until vegetables are slightly tender.
3. Slice polenta into 1/2 inch circles and season with garlic salt and pepper and layer the slices in a large casserole dish. Spoon the vegetable mixture over the polenta, top with the chicken pieces, then sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
4. Bake casserole for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

So good. So comforting. So healthy. Loved it!

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p.s. I’m testing out Google’s calendar widget for blogs, so check out my side bar to see what we’re having for dinner and also to find links to great recipes!