Creamy Polenta

We like polenta, but we don't eat it that often. I've never made it "from scratch" but have now bought from Trader Joe's both the tubes of pre-cooked polenta (which were used in the tamale pie) and the creamy polenta ($2.99) from the frozen section. The frozen polenta looked like an easy side dish to heat up on a day when we would need something quickly.

When I took out the package, I thought maybe it had frozen into blocks because I kept it in the freezer door, so I was surprised to see that the "blocks" were actually the way it was supposed to look. They were large teardrop-shaped pieces of polenta surrounded by frozen vegetables (spinach and carrots). 

I followed the microwave instructions from the package. As the polenta cooked, the pieces started to melt and became softer and creamier.

We were really excited to try this, even if it wasn't the most attractive dish once it was all stirred up and ready to eat. It was okay. It was creamy and rich, but didn't have a ton of cornmeal flavor like you would expect from polenta. I was expecting it to have a really intense cornmeal flavor like the polenta tubes, but it didn't. It was much more subdued. The vegetables didn't add a whole lot either. They weren't easily distinguishable in flavor from any of the rest of the dish. The polenta just tasted like it needed a little extra something. Reading other people's reviews online now, and maybe it would have been better with a little salt or some grated parmesan.

Buy Again? Maybe, but probably not. It wasn't awful, but, given a choice between this and the tube, we would both probably pick the pre-cooked polenta tube instead. I know it's not the same as "real" polenta, but we really enjoy the firmer texture and the flavor. And then you can have tamale pie (among other things)!

Note: I started this post when we ate the frozen polenta over the summer. I think Trader Joe's still carries it, but we haven't bought it since, so I'm not 100% sure.