Cauliflower Polenta with Red Lentil Sauce

I found out what happens if you let a cauliflower go several weeks past when you should have harvested it.  The head diverges into florets, kind of like what happens to broccoli after the first head is cut and you get side florets.  It's still edible, just not pretty.  I was more careful with the first one in the Pond and cut it the day it started to bolt, even though it was too small to cut into decent florets.  So, I went off to find a recipe to use riced cauliflower and the cup of pasta sauce I had left from the meat-eggplant casserole.

I'm basing this off The Foodie Physician's cauliflower polenta, which was almost exactly what I had in mind.  I'm adding lentils to the sauce for a bit more protein because I didn't have mascarpone.  It's nice to have something to do with red lentils that isn't necessarily Indian or Middle Eastern.  This dish comes in somewhere around Mediterranean, without attaching it to a specific cuisine.  It's vaguely Italian.

I'm not used to eating polenta as a bowl of hot mush.  I usually chill it, unmold, and slice into shapes.  It has a nice, creamy texture.  Yes, I used regular corn meal and not fine polenta, but it's the same idea.  Thicker than a cream soup but thinner than a casserole, I need to remember this the next time I have dental work.

• *1 head or 12 oz bag riced cauliflower
• *3/4 C dry polenta or corn meal
• *3 C unsalted vegetable or chicken stock
• *1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
• *1/2 C dry red lentils
• *1 C tomato pasta sauce
• salt and pepper to taste

1.  If working from fresh, trim leaves from cauliflower and chop into florets.  Run through the food processor until bits are the size of oatmeal.

2.  Thoroughly rinse lentils and start simmering in water to cover.

3.  In a separate saucepan, stir together cornmeal, cauliflower, and 2 C of the vegetable stock.  I actually made an onion stock out of just onion and leek parts from the broth bag, since there isn't any onion in this recipe.  Bring mixture to a low boil, stirring frequently.  If it starts to boil vigorously, it will erupt in hot lava cornmeal bombs.  Turn down the heat.  Add more broth as the mixture thickens, which will take 10-15 minutes.  It will not get as thick as a pure cornmeal mush, but will still drop in clumps from the spoon.  Stir in parmesan until it disappears.  Taste, then add salt and pepper as needed.

4.  Once the lentils are cooked, drain and return to pot.  Add pasta sauce and heat through.

5.  To serve, spoon hot polenta mixture into bowls.  Top with spoonfuls of lentil sauce and serve.

Difficulty rating  :)