POLENTA CHICKEN PATTIES

I devised these little polenta patties after looking at an old Asian chicken patty recipe of mine. You can make this patty a little more Mexican by adding some ground or fresh chilli, if you can handle it! I love creating simple recipes like this that can be eaten as a snack or as a main meal. Make sure you let the patties rest after cooking them on the stove, as the chicken continues to cook during this time. 

Ingredients

• 500g free range chicken mince
• 1 free range egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup polenta
• 1 medium carrot, grated 
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1/2 a medium capsicum (any colour), finely chopped 
• 3 teaspoons taco seasoning 
• pinch of ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon rice bran oil 
• Optional - 1 medium avocado, 2 tomatoes, sliced and a few generous handfuls of baby spinach leaves 

Cooking 

1. Combine the mince, egg, polenta, carrot, spring onion, capsicum, taco seasoning and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Mix well to combine all ingredients (using your hands works best!). 

2. Shape the mixture into 8 even sized patties. 

3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the patties to the pan, making sure to flatten each one down with a spatula. Cook for one side for 3 minutes, then flip and cook on the other side for 2 minutes. Remove the patties from the stove and leave to rest for 5 minutes before serving. 

Serve warm on a bed of baby spinach, tomato and a quarter of an avocado each. 

Serves / 4 / 2 patties each + a serving of salad 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 10 minutes 

x Emily 

POLENTA, PUMPKIN & TURKEY MUFFINS

These muffins are an adaptation of Sarah Wilson's 'Mexican Beef Nacho Muffins' found in her 'I Quit Sugar for Life' cookbook. I wanted to make a savoury turkey muffin equivalent using different spices and ingredients. I also used her Pumpkin Puree recipe which is incorporated below into the muffin recipe. If you have her cookbook or access her website you will see that several of her other recipes call for this prepared pumpkin puree. You could also use the leftover puree in brownies, as a pizza sauce or make it into a very simple mash by adding a few splashes of almond milk. These muffins are delicious for a breakfast on-the-go, a filling snack, or for lunch and/or dinner with a side of vegetables. 

Ingredients

Muffin

• 1 large pumpkin, deseeded, peeled & cut into small even pieces
• 3 teaspoons coconut oil, plus extra to grease
• sea salt & ground black pepper
• 60g piece of leek, finely chopped
• 500g lean turkey mince
• 2 free-range eggs
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground chilli
• 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
• 100g sweet potato, peeled & grated
• 1/2 cup polenta, plus extra to dust 

Topping

• 1 small avocado
• 1 tablespoon lime juice

Cooking 

1. Preheat a fan force oven to 200 degrees celsius.  Line a large baking tray with baking paper. 

2. Toss the pumpkin pieces with 2 teaspoons of the coconut oil and a generous pinch of salt & pepper. Place the pumpkin in a single layer on the tray and bake for 20 minutes or until tender but not burnt. 

3. Remove the cooked pumpkin from the oven and mash by hand (or use a blender) to make into a puree. You will need 1/2 cup of puree for this recipe. You can store the remainder (which should equal 2 - 2 1/2 cups) in zip-lock bags or containers in 1/2 cup quantities in the fridge or freezer. 

4. Meanwhile, heat 1 teaspoon coconut oil in a small to medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the leek and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until soft but not burnt.

5. Lightly grease a 12 hole tin muffin tin with coconut oil. 

6. Mash the avocado until smooth and stir in the lime juice. 

7. Combine the 1/2 cup pumpkin puree, cooked leek, turkey mince, eggs, spices, mustard, sweet potato, 1/2 cup polenta and a pinch of salt & pepper in a large bowl (mixing by hand works best!). Divide the meat mixture evenly into each muffin mould (you should be able to get 11-12 muffins out of this batter). Sprinkle a few teaspoons of polenta on top of the muffins. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the top of each muffin is lightly browned. Use one muffin as the test muffin to check that the meat has cooked through and no pink flesh remains. 

8. Cool the muffins in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cook completely. Serve with a small dollop of avocado topping. 

Makes / 11 

Total Preparation time / 20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 60 minutes / 1 hour (not including cooling time) 

x Emily 

PECORINO POLENTA

I’ve recently gotten right into cooking with polenta, as it is a wonderful substitute to rice, noodles and pasta and is therefore perfect for anyone living gluten-free. Polenta is a fine white or yellow cornmeal that has a deep-rooted history as its origins date back to the 1700’s. This dish was first discovered in Italy and was viewed as peasant food as it was abundant and inexpensive.

The America Indian word for corn is maize, which translates as “that which sustains life”. Corn is a very close third behind wheat & rice as one of the most vital grains in the world.

What are the benefits of corn and by extension polenta? To start with, corn is one of the healthiest and lowest calorie foods around. Corn is also one of the best vegetables as it provides the body with long-lasting energy. Polenta consists of complex carbohydrates, which are jam-packed with fibre and are slowly digested by the body, meaning that you feel fuller for longer than when you consume simple carbs. 

Cornmeal is also full of nutrients such as iron, zinc, magnesium, thymine and phosphorous, which are all excellent for your body.

 The thing that I love most about polenta is its impressive versatility. Polenta can be served soft, hard, grilled, sautéed or baked, like I have in the recipe below. My dish is gluten and dairy-free, however many polenta recipes involve milk and cow’s cheese. Having tried polenta several ways, I do find that the simple, dairy-free baked polenta below is my personal favourite. 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups vegetable stock (preferably Massel stock)
• 1 cup yellow polenta
• 1/4 cup sheep's hard pecorino cheese, finely grated
• coconut oil, to lightly grease

COOKING 

1. Pour stock and 500ml (2 cups) cold water into a large saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to the boil. Slowly stir in the polenta, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, for around 5 minutes or until the consistency of the polenta is thick. Remove from heat, season with sea salt & ground black pepper and stir in the pecorino cheese. 

2. Spoon cooked polenta into a 20cm x 20cm lightly greased baking tray and even the surface with the back of a wet tablespoon. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or until set. 

3. When polenta is set, preheat a fan-forced oven to 180 degrees. Gently remove the set polenta from the tray and cut into eight even-sized wedges. Place on a prepared baking tray and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until the polenta is lightly golden and the outside is crisp. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 

Total Cooking time / 45-50 minutes (plus overnight to set)

x Emily 

LEMON & ORANGE POLENTA CAKE

It’s not an easy feat to make a gluten, dairy and wheat free cake taste delicious. Throw in the fact that you want a cake to be reasonably healthy and low in fat as well and its damn near impossible. I stress that this cake is for a special occasion, due to the plentiful amount of margarine in the recipe. A word to the wise; do not reduce the amount of margarine or you will be left with an inedible dry cake (my first attempt!). The polenta and ground almonds in the cake are a much healthy alternative to brown or white sugar and flour. The orange & lemon zest really gives a fruity tang to the cake that lifts the otherwise mild taste of polenta. I wish I could say that I had come up with this recipe myself, however the substance of the recipe came from ‘The Best Gluten-free, Wheat-free & Dairy-Free Recipes’ by Grace Cheetham.

INGREDIENTS

• 250g dairy-free margarine (such as Nutalex), plus extra to grease
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 4-5 tablespoons honey
• 200g polenta
• 100g almond meal (ground almonds)
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
• zest of 1/2 a large orange 
• zest of 1 lemon and the juice of 1 lemon

COOKING 

1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 180 degrees celsius. Lightly grease a cake tin with margarine. 

2. Using an electric mixer or hand-held electric whisk beat the margarine until it becomes light and fluffy (this should take a few minutes). Gradually beat in the eggs, one at a time and then the honey. 

3. Using a large metal spoon, gently stir in the polenta, almond meal and baking powder. Add the orange & lemon zest and mix well. Pour into the cake tin and bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and firm to touch. Remove from the oven and leave the cake to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, before placing it on a wire rack to cool completely. 

Dust extra almond meal and lemon/orange zest on top of the cake if you wish. 

Serves / 8-10

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes

Total Cooking time / 35-40 (not including cooling time)

x E