Polenta Party!

Yesterday I had a few family members over for a little Polenta Party for Mother’s Day! I doubled the Breakfast Polenta recipe I posted awhile back and made a little bar of toppings!

One side of the table had all the SWEET fixings!

Here’s what was there:

Bananas
Brown Sugar
Raisins
Milk
Butter
Toasted Walnuts

The other side was the SAVORY side!

Here’s what was there:

Maple Pepper Bacon
Roasted Lemony Asparagus
Sauteed Mushrooms
Grated Parmesan
Meaty Marinara Sauce

I sat on the Savory side, but ended up eating Sweet Breakfast Polenta!

Here’s my combo:

Bananas
Toasted Walnuts
Brown Sugar
Maple Bacon
Milk

The best part was that I didn’t have to do the dishes!

peachey May 10, 2010

official. you are a genius.

& glad to see you had a happy mother’s day!

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- Tracy May 10, 2010
  
  hehee. thank you!
  
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Dana May 10, 2010

I love this idea! We often have people over for brunch and I tend to go the eggs/potatoes/coffeecake route each time. Not that people are complaining, but it would be fun to do something different.

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- Tracy May 10, 2010
  
  it’s a nice change of pace for sure. Some of the guests were shocked that polenta could replace oatmeal! Next time I might poach some eggs too!
  
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Rebecca May 10, 2010

How fun! I love your table setting, so cute! Did you add polenta to your combo too?

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- Tracy May 10, 2010
  
  yup! woops, did i forget to mention that? thanks!
  
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vegantickles May 11, 2010

You always have such great ideas.!!!

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Sage & Style May 11, 2010

This is so incredibly smart! I’ve never thought to do a polenta party but I’ve got to have one now! I love all the pairings … I wonder when pairing drinks, would red wine or beer be better?

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- Tracy May 11, 2010
  
  Thanks! For the savory side, it all depends on the fixings! If you want something that goes with all of the toppings I put out, it would be best to pair it with a Riesling or a Gruner (both white wines) They would be the most versatile for the asparagus. If you take away the asparagus, a pinot would be great!
  
  I could see pairing the polenta with beer if you made it with sausages! Good luck! It’s totally fun!
  
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Y May 11, 2010

I just found your site for the first time and looked through a bit of it. Wow, you have awesome photos! Thanks for all the great shots throughout the meal-making process.

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tiina { sparkling ink } May 11, 2010

Looks like so much fun! I love breakfast moments:)

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Paul R. Giunta May 14, 2010

One of my uncles does this every year. He has three large tables and a large piece of wood for each that was cut to match the table top size. He mixes the polenta all day and when it is dinner time, it is poured onto the boards and allowed to set-up for a minute or two before all of the sauce and meats are placed in the center. Once some Parmesan is tossed over it all it is time for everyone to pull up a seat and to make their way for the middle.

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- Tracy May 14, 2010
  
  That’s what my grandma does too! We have such a blast…and totally overeat! It’s the best part about being Italian!
  
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Amanda May 18, 2010

the only I read in that whole post was MAPLE BACON.

Excuse me while I run to the store and pick up bacon right now. In my pjs.

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- Tracy May 19, 2010
  
  you should really try the recipe. Super amazingly good.
  
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Ursula August 10, 2014

Pinning! I had polenta growing up in Lima, but never had it the way you display it in a photo. It was more of a main dish, with a heavy meat sauce on top and grated parmesan cheese 😉

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