Polenta French Toast

I have been saving this recipe for awhile...waiting for the right moment. The stars had to align perfectly, ya know? Anyway I was making a big ole pot of polenta and realized there was no way I was eating that much Italian polenta with the Creole Chicken and Sausage I made in the slow cooker. I remembered I wanted to try Breakfast Polenta and specifically use the tip at the end of the Take a Megabite blog post. Ms. Megabite is right, this is like French Toast's cousin. I sliced my pieces big like I would French bread so it took a bit of time to brown up in the pan. May not be photo friendly but then again I snapped a quick picture as I was digging in...just returned from the gym. This is delicious stuff and the polenta flavor barely comes through with all that cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla goodness.

                                     

 

Vanilla Brown Sugar Breakfast Polenta

{Serves 3-4}
Recipe adapted in half from Joy the Baker

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup polenta
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup milk
• heaping 1/4 t salt
• 2 heaping T brown sugar
• 1/2 t vanilla
• pinch of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Measure out the polenta in a small bowl and top with 1/2 cup cold water. Put remaining cup of water and milk in a saucepan and bring to a low boil. Add salt and stir. Slowly add polenta mixture, whisking away lumps.
2. Once all of the polenta is added, turn the heat to low, and simmer until thickened. When it’s the thickness you fancy, stir in the brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Remove from heat and serve in a small bowl or cup topped with a little bit of milk and some additional brown sugar if you want. Enjoy!

TIP: Pour the leftover polenta into a plastic wrap lined loaf pan and chill until firm. Then slice, dredge in flour, and toss in a frying pan with some hot vegetable oil. Top it with jam or syrup and enjoy! It’s like French toast’s cousin!


Okay, so this blog is mainly cupcakes and other baked goods but I just have to share this Slow Cooker Creole Chicken and Sausage with ya'll too. I served mine up with polenta instead of rice.

Slow Cooker Creole Chicken and Sausage

Author: Pinch of Yum

 

Serves: 6

 

Ingredients

The essentials:

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 12 ounces smoked Andouille sausage, cut into small rounds
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1¼ cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• ½ cup tomato sauce
• 2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne

Optional extras:

• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 14 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped
• ½ cup sliced green onions for topping
• 2 tablespoons almond butter (randomly delicious)
• salt to taste
• brown rice for serving

Instructions

1. Place the essential ingredients in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3 hours.
2. Shred the chicken directly in the crockpot to your desired texture. Add the extras, if you want, and cover and cook for another 20-30 minutes. This is also a great time to make your rice, if you're serving it with rice. When everything is ready, taste the chicken mixture and season with salt. Serve the creole chicken over rice and topped with green onions.