Bacon Sage Polenta

Total Time: 30 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 4 slices bacon, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 4 cups water, plus extra as needed
• 1 cup traditional polenta or 1 cup quick cook polenta
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• slat and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Recipe

• 1 cook bacon in heavy, large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp [i used a 5-quart sauté pan, which was perfect]. using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat from skillet. add sage and corn; sauté 1 minute. add 4 cups water and increase heat to medium-high and bring to boil. gradually whisk in polenta.
• 2 reduce heat to low; cook until polenta begins to thicken, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes, if you’re using traditional polenta. for quick cooking polenta, total cooking time will be about 5 minutes. also, as you “graduallyâ€? stir it in, it will thicken quickly—alarmingly even. if needed, add more water 1/2 cup at a time. being stuck with the quick-cooking variety, i ended up adding a little more than a cup of extra water. stir in parmesan cheese and bacon. season with salt and pepper. serve immediately.