Cooking with Beer - Polenta Triangles

Ingredients:

1/2 cup polenta (aka corn meal)

1/2 cup amber ale

1 cup vegetable broth

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 oz feta cheese, crumbled

2 oz diced pimentos

Directions:

1. Combine polenta and ale in small bowl. Mix well and set aside.

2. Pour vegetable broth into large saucepan. Bring to a boil then add garlic and polenta/ale mixture. Mix well.

3. Return to a boil then cover and reduce heat. Cook for 20 minutes over low flame.

4. Remove from heat and stir in feta cheese until cheese is melted.

5. Add pimentos and stir well.

6. Spray an 8 x 8 inch square pan with nonstick spray. Spoon polenta mixture into pan and smooth it out evenly.

7. Cover and place in refrigerator for one hour or until completely cool and solid.

8. If needed, spray grill with nonstick spray. Warm up grill. (I used my George Foreman grill, so I didn't need nonstick spray for this part)

9. Cut polenta into 4 inch squares. Cut squares diagonally into triangles for a total of 8 triangles.

10. Place triangles on grill until bottoms are lightly browned. Turn over and grill until browned on that side. Serve warm.

I found this recipe in significant other's Cooking with Beer recipe book. It's listed in the appetizer section, but we made it into a full meal by having it with salad and baked beans. It was really yummy, and so simple to make! I'd never had polenta until a couple of months ago, and as it turns out, I love it!

Southwest Sweet Potato

Ingredients:

3 large orange sweet potatoes

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 large white onion, chopped

5 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp chili powder

14 oz canned chopped tomatoes

1 cup vegetable stock

1 large zucchini, cut into squares

1 large green pepper, cubed

11 oz canned corn kernels

28 oz canned red kidney beans

3 Tbsp chopped cilantro

sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese to serve

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 415 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Rinse sweet potatoes and poke with holes. Place on cookie sheet and bake until soft (1 to 1.5 hours).

3. Heat oil in large pan and cook onion over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until soft.

4. Add garlic and spices and stir for 1 minute.

5. Add tomato and vegetable stock and stir well.

6. Add vegetables and beans.

7. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 10-15 minutes or until slightly thickened.

8. Stir in cilantro just before serving.

9. To serve, cut sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Spoon mixture over top, add spoonful of sour cream and sprinkle with cheese.

This recipe has caught my eye on a few different occasions, but we always ultimately decided to make something else. This time we went for it, and WOW! I loved this. I wish there had been leftovers for me to eat tonight, this was so incredibly yummy. The sweet potatoes were cooked just right, they were so tender and wonderful, and the spice level was just right, it was just a small amount of kick, not lighting your tongue on fire. I will definitely be making this one again.