This creamy polenta is topped with mushrooms, kale, and chickpeas for a warm, high-protein meal. It’s a wholesome dish that works well for lunch or dinner and reheats easily.
Ingredients
For the vegetables
- 10 ounces mushrooms any variety or a combination of different types, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 large red onion sliced
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 5 cups chopped kale tough stems removed
- 1½ cups diced tomatoes
- 1½ cups cooked or 1 (15-ounce) can low-sodium or no-salt-added chickpeas
- Drained 1 cup low-sodium or no-salt added vegetable broth
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
For the polenta
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup cornmeal
Instructions
- Heat 2–3 tablespoons water in a large skillet. Add mushrooms, garlic, and onion and water-sauté 5 minutes at medium heat or until onions are tender and mushrooms have cooked down.
- Add balsamic vinegar and simmer for an additional minute. Add kale and continue cooking until kale has softened.
- Add tomatoes, chickpeas, vegetable broth, thyme, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- Simmer for 10 minutes, breaking up some of the chickpeas and tomatoes with the back of a spoon.
- To prepare polenta, bring water to a boil over high heat, then slowly whisk in cornmeal. When all the cornmeal is added, reduce heat to a very low simmer, cover, and continue cooking until the polenta is smooth and thick, about 10–20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Serve polenta topped with kale and chickpea mixture.