Polenta Casserole

Polenta (boiled cornmeal) is a fun ingredient to work with. It has great texture, and it's very versatile. It can be a bit hard to find in some grocery stores (I once searched high and low for it and when I finally found some it was over 2 years expired...gross!). Anyway, definitely give polenta a try if you haven't yet!

Polenta and Vegetable Casserole

Ingredients:

1 (16 ounce) tube polenta, cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 (16 ounce) can black beans

1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans

1 (10 ounce) can whole kernel corn

1 onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

6 fresh mushrooms, chopped

1 (1.27 ounce) packet dry fajita seasoning (I omitted this and added chili powder and cumin instead)

1 (8 ounce) jar salsa

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup black olives
1 eggplant (I omitted this)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, green pepper, eggplant, and mushrooms in oil until soft. Mix in fajita seasoning.

3. Line prepared baking dish with slices of polenta. Spread beans and corn evenly over the polenta, and then spread onion mixture over the beans. Top with salsa, mozzarella cheese and black olives. (Note: I put the beans and corn on the bottom, then added the polenta, then the onion mixture).

4. Bake until heated through, about 20 minutes.