These little Italian appetizers, served at a restaurant in the Lake Como area of Italy, are just the right combination of sweet caramelized onion, salty pancetta and cheesy polenta. I tried to recreate the recipe after returning home from a vacation in Italy and was happy enough with my results to enter it into an employee recipe contest. It won a prize for best appetizer recipe.
Here's how to make these delicious little bites. Cook cornmeal with chicken broth. Then fold in some Italian seasoning and a little Parmesan cheese.
Spread the cooked cornmeal mixture into a 13x9-inch baking dish. Refrigerate to thicken and cool.
While the polenta is cooling, caramelize the onion and cook the pancetta. This is what the raw pancetta looks like.
Here is the pancetta after frying it.
Cut the polenta into squares. Place some of the caramelized onion on each polenta square.
Over the onion, add the fried pancetta and some shredded Parmesan cheese. Bake 10 to 11 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Caramelized Onion and Pancetta-Topped Polenta Bites
Prep Time: 50 minutes
Start to Finish: 1 hour 15 minutes
24 appetizers
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 carton (32 oz) Progresso® chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
¾ cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
½ large sweet onion, thinly slices
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ lb pancetta, cut into thin strips
Spray 13x9-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray. In 2-quart saucepan, mix cornmeal and ¾ cup of the chicken broth. In small saucepan over high heat, bring remaining chicken broth to a boil. Stir boiling chicken broth and Italian seasoning into cornmeal mixture. Cook over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Continue to cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes until mixture is very thick and smooth. Fold in ¼ cup of the cheese.
Using rubber scraper, spread mixture into baking dish; refrigerate uncovered about 1 hour or until firm.
Meanwhile in large skillet, cook onion in olive oil over low heat, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes or until lightly browned and caramelized. Remove from skillet. In same skillet, cook pancetta until crisp, stirring often; remove from skillet with slotted spoon and place on paper towel.
Heat oven to 350°F. Line 15x10-inch pan with parchment paper. Cut polenta into 6 rows by
4 rows. Place polenta squares on paper-lined pan.
Spoon onion and pancetta onto polenta. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup of the cheese. Bake 10 to 11 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Tips:
Pancetta (Italian bacon) is cured with salt and spices but not smoked. If you don’t have pancetta, you can substitute bacon.
To make ahead, cook the cornmeal, onion and pancetta up to two days before serving these appetizer bites; cover and store in the refrigerator.