Breakfast Polenta with Winter Fruit Compote

By aargersi • December 4, 2009 • 4 Comments

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Author Notes: When I was a kid we camped a lot, and my Mom always made fried mush - leftover cream of wheat fried in butter and then served with honey, and we LOVED it. I decided to apply the idea to polenta and spruce up the name a little :-)When I am making a savory polenta I typically buy a coarser grind organic variety sold in bulk at my store, but for this I used a finer precooked type. - aargersi

Serves 4

Breakfast Polenta

3 cups apple cider
1 cup quick cooking polenta
1 teaspoon chinese 5 spice
1/4 cup dried cranberries
several pats of butter

Winter fruit compote

1 granny smith apple - peeled cored and diced
1 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 cup apple cider
1/2 cup real maple syrup (I like grade B)
1/4 teaspoon chinese 5 spice
zest from 1 orange

The night before - spray a pie plate with non-stick spray. Bring the apple cider to a simmer and stir in the polenta and 5 spice. Cook according to the directions for the polenta (usually around 5 minutes) remove from heat and stir in dried cranberries. Spread evenly into pie plate, cool, cover and refrigerate.
in the morning: Make the compote - bring the cider, syrup and 5 spice to a simmer, add the apples, cranberries and orange zest and simmer on low until the apples are tender. Keep warm.
melt 1-2 pats of butter (depending on your level of butter love :-) in a non stick skillet. Cut the polenta in 8 wedges, and fry them in the butter 2 at a time until crisp. Serve with the compote.
NOTE - you can serve 4 people in one morning, or yourself 4 days in a row, as this keeps in the fridge just fine!