MINI POLENTA PIZZAS
We've had our eye on this mini polenta pizza recipe for quite some time and we can't be more excited to share it with you. This AMAZING recipe comes from House in the Hills - a fantastic blog that we just can't seem to get enough of. This caramelized onion and rainbow chard version is to die for.. but we want to see your variations! Show us by using #estcalifornia on your social devices!
MINI POLENTA PIZZAS (topped with rainbow chard and caramelized onion)
Serves 4- approximately 12 mini pizzas
Vegan + Gluten Free
Ingredients
1 cup polenta
3.5 cups vegetable broth
1 large yellow onion
1 large bunch of rainbow chard
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon sea salt and more to taste
5 tablespoons of chopped pine nuts
4 tablespoons of olive oil
4 medium cloves crushed garlic
6 tablespoons pesto (recipe here)
crushed red pepper flakes
Method
Crust
- Preheat oven into 375 F.
- In a medium, heavy bottomed pot combine polenta, vegetable broth, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, thyme, oregano, rosemary and basil.
- Cook over medium low heat stirring continuously with a whisk for about 8-10 minutes or until polenta is very thick.
- Immediately spoon polenta onto (2) 10X15 baking sheets forming 2.5 inch round circles and lightly flattening with spoon.
- Let polenta sit for 20 minutes or place in refrigerator to firm up before baking.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
Toppings
- In a medium frying pan combine 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1 very large thinly sliced onion, and 2 good pinches of sea salt.
- Sauté over low heat stirring every 5-7 minutes until brown and caramelized (could take up to one hour). The trick to the most amazing caramelized onions is to cook them as slowly as possible and patience TOTALLY pays off!
- Prepare rainbow chard by separating the stems of the chard from the leaves. Discard stems. Thoroughly wash and dry leaves.
- Rough chops leaves until no large pieces remain.
- In a medium frying pan combine chard, crushed garlic and 1 tablespoon olive oil.
- Sprinkle with sea salt and cook over med-low heat stirring frequently.
Assembly
- Spoon 1/2 tablespoon pesto onto each pre-baked pizza crust, top with cooked chard and caramelized onions.
- Cook for an additional 10 minutes, or until crust is crunchy!
- Sprinkle with chopped pine nuts, fresh cracked pepper, finishing salt and red pepper flakes to your preference.
- Serve using a thin spatula to remove pizzas from baking sheet. Let sit cool for a minute or two before serving.
Notes
* If onions begin to stick add additional oil as needed.
* Be careful! Polenta splatters when cooking!
* Do not oil baking sheets, this will keep the crusts from crisping as much as you’d like.
* As polenta firms up it becomes harder to spread. If this happens when creating the crusts add a tiny bit more veggie broth to mixture and return to stove, heating for an additional minute before attempting again.
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All Photography and Recipe from A House in the Hills