When we got married a couple of years ago, my husband had never had polenta up until that point in his life. As a student, living on my own, I had been eating polenta for years (and loving it). So when the new year rolled around two years ago, and the temperatures plummeted in January, I wanted to make something deliciously warm and cozy to surprise Mr K with.
Polenta lasagna bolognese
The result was this glorious Polenta Lasagna Bolognese and these flavor-packed mushroom polenta stacks. Making this polenta lasagna is always a challenge for us, because we both end up “taste testing” the bolognese so much that we are always at risk of not having enough for the final dish. 🙂 Most people that I know who like bolognese sauce, prefer it with basil or thyme, but my choice has always been oregano. That was how I ate it and loved it growing up, and I’m yet to find a reason to part ways with that tradition after all these years. 🙂 We usually make this polenta bolognese with my hidden veggie pasta sauce – A sauce that I make sure is in my fridge! However, sometimes you don’t always have homemade at home, so it can be made with your favorite store bought pasta sauce, like Ragu marinara sauce. While I love making pasta and pasta sauce from scratch, time and life don’t always allow me the luxury to do that. For moments like those, I like to keep some pasta sauce handy in my pantry. The cheesy goodness, the polenta infused with the flavorful bolognese sauce, the hidden vegetables… there’s so much that I like about this dish over regular pasta. Also, the bolognese sauce can make or break a lasagna, so why not use great ingredients? This is easily one of our favorite gluten free recipes that tastes like a special occasion worthy meal too! While I do love creamy, cheesy polenta layers, the one thing that I find irresistible about this dish is that bubbling surface when it comes out of the oven. Just like this beef cannelloni or my meatball skillet, which are two more of our favorite cozy winter recipes. You know those edges where the meat sauce bubbles and mixes with the cheese to form that perfect cheesy crust? That’s what I’m talking about! 🙂 You could use quick polenta for this recipe too, though I would recommend traditional stone-ground polenta. Quick polenta tastes quite bland in comparison, although adding extra parmesan cheese could help. This bolognese recipe should serve you well, whether you want to make polenta lasagna, pasta lasagna or spaghetti bolognese. It’s an absolute winner and has all the makings of a new tradition for your family too! It’s a warm, comforting meal and is a fantastic way to get some hidden veggies in to your kids too! If you liked this recipe don’t forget to subscribe for new (and free) recipes by entering your email address below or on the side bar (and get all these recipes delivered straight to your inbox), so you don’t miss out on a thing. You can find me on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST and GOOGLE-PLUS too.
