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Ingredients:
4 ½ cups water
4 cups (1 quart) chicken stock
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
1.5 cups polenta taragna
5 oz Fontina, Taleggio, or any sharp hard cheese
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
Extra virgin olive oil
4 oz exotic, cultivated mushrooms (piopinno, hen of the woods, trumpet, morel, chanterelle, or portobello)
3 tablespoons chopped basil or fresh parsley
Cook the polenta taragna: Heat water and stock to boiling in heavy-bottomed pot. Reduce heat to low and add salt. Slowly add polenta taragna while whisking to remove any lumps. Continue cooking for 45 min to 1 hour, stirring frequently and adding more water as needed to maintain the consistency you like.
About stirring: More frequent stirring is needed early in the cooking process. We start out using a whisk. Once the grains soak up water – after 10 minutes or so – switch to a wooden spoon for stirring. Continuous stirring isn’t necessary, but you will need to stir periodically every 2 -3 minutes throughout the entire cooking process, taking care that the polenta isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Make the mushroom topping. Prep mushrooms by wiping off any dirt or debris; cut into bite-sized chunks, slices; leave smaller mushrooms whole. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and a splash of olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add mushrooms, salt & pepper to taste, then sauté until they lose their liquids. At that point add ½ cup dry white wine and simmer until liquid is reduced in volume by half.
Finish the polenta taragna. Prep the cheese by removing any rind; cut into small pieces. Cut remaining 3 tablespoons of butter into small pieces. 10 minutes before the polenta has finished cooking, add the cheese stirring to incorporate. Finish by stirring the butter in. Turn off the heat and let the polenta stand for 5 minutes before serving.
To serve, spoon polenta taragna into a large bowl or individual serving dishes, top with mushroom mixture, and sprinkle fresh herbs on top.
