Gather

Set yourself free! This is the first post on the Sasquatch Books blog. We are a small press in Seattle with some cool authors writing about living large in the garden, getting the best room when you travel, and expressing your inner gourmet in the kitchen. Sasquatch has regional roots in the Pacific Northwest, and most of our authors come from the western states. Our authors have lots of different things to say, and we will be bringing those ideas to the fore in this blog.

So this is Gary; I’m the publisher here at Sasquatch. And I’m thinking about scallions, aka green onions. Simple, basic, easy to ignore. I have tended to think of them as parsley with a bit more flavor, sprinkled on top of some dishes. But in Georgeanne Brennan’s new cookbook, Gather, there’s a wonderful recipe for Creamy Polenta with White Cheddar and Green Onions.

Once you get over the fact that you have to stand at the stove and stir the polenta or it turns into something geologic, it’s easy. Georgeanne recommends bringing some reading material to the stove. I’ve been making this for breakfast, so I bring the newspaper (yes, that atavistic thing printed on big sheets of paper). Wow, maybe it’s the combo of sharp cheese and green onions or the fact that the onions are sautéed, but they become delicious green flavor buds in this comforting dish. Here’s the recipe:

Creamy Polenta with White Cheddar and Green Onions

1 bunch green onions
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, divided
6 to 7 cups water
1-1/2 cups polenta
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
1/3 cup shredded white cheddar cheese or soft, fresh goat cheese
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Finely chop the green onions, using all but the upper third of the green stalk. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the green onions and let them “sweat,” cooking them through but not letting them brown, about 5 minutes. Remove them from the heat and set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, bring 4 cups of the water to a boil. Add the polenta in a steady stream, whisking as you pour it into the pot. Whisk in the salt.

Reduce the heat to low and continue whisking until there are no lumps, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook until the polenta is soft, has thickened, and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 20 minutes. (Add more water if the polenta gets thick before it is soft enough.) Stir in the remaining butter, the cheese, pepper, and green onions. Serve immediately.

Makes 8 servings