Thursday, April 30, 2009

I get bored with the same old thing

The other night, I decided I wanted to try something different for dinner. I saw a recipe once for Italian Pot Pie (it was Rachael Ray's - don't judge) and I decided to see if I could recreate it without a recipe. It turned out pretty well!

Chop up an onion, a few carrots and a few stalks of celery. Saute in olive oil over medium heat until soft.


Add some chicken broth (about two cups or half a box) and some ricotta cheese (to make it creamy! I used part skim - health conscious, you know). I also threw in a few tablespoons of flour to help thicken the sauce.


Cook it down for a while and then add some shredded roasted chicken, from a leftover chicken you might have or one of those store bought rotisserie chickens (I love those). Throw in some chopped herbs too - I used basil and parsley (and salt and pepper! Can't forget those).


Add some cherry or grape tomatoes too!


The tomatoes should burst and the liquid should cook down. Then, transfer the whole mixture to a baking dish.


Now here come your new best friends - a ball of mozzarella and a tube of polenta.


I never use precooked polenta like this, but it sure is handy in this dish. Cut them into disks and layer them on top of the baking dish.


Then sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese. Yum! I'm hungry now.


Put the whole dish in the broiler and melt the cheese and warm the polenta. It should only take about five minutes.


Oh it is so good. Here's a side view after we ate one side away.


It's nice to mix things up sometimes and try new things. I get tired of pasta all the time. This had some great flavor and didn't take too long to make! You should totally try it at home.

1 comment:

Meredith said...

Hmm- that looks pretty good. That polenta is also really great for frying up- you just have to dry the slices really well and dust them with flour so they crisp up nicely.

New things are good- I'm looking forward to expanding my repertoire once my new csa starts.