Deep Dish Polenta Pizza: A One-Pot Wonder!

I don't know about you, but following a full day of work (and usually some meeting, outing or exercise class thereafter), cooking can seem like a tremendous chore. Granted, making food generally acts as a therapeutic hobby for me, but there are days when picking up a phone and ordering a house chow mein is tempting.

Don't get me wrong: I have Shanghai Garden on speed-dial.

This polenta pizza will take less time than it would take a delivery man to get to your door, and the preparation is easy, too. You can variate it by adding your favorite pizza toppings. Deee-licious.

Deep Dish Polenta Pizza
adapted from Real Simple

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for the pan
1 cup polenta (not instant)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 cup fresh spinach
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced garlic
4 ounces mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 lb pork sausage, italian style

1. Heat oven to 400° F. Oil a 9-inch springform pan or pie plate; set aside.

2. Brown sausage. Drain, set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, bring 2¼ cups water to a boil. Whisking constantly, slowly add the polenta. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring, until the polenta starts to pull away from the side of the pan, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

3. Using a spoon, spread the polenta over the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pan.
In a bowl, combine the spinach, tomatoes, garlic, mozzarella, the remaining tablespoon of oil, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture over the polenta and bake until the polenta is crisp around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes.