Cheesy Polenta with Poached Eggs

5 from 1 vote

Cheesy Polenta with Poached Eggs

Creamy pumpkin parmesan polenta topped with poached eggs makes a great fall breakfast. It’s good as breakfast-for-dinner too. Leftovers keep well for 3-4 days in the refrigerator and it re-heats beautifully. For options on poaching eggs, please see post. I use a poaching pan with non-stick insert.

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Total Time40

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 276kcal

Author: Sally Cameron

Equipment

A heavy pot like a Dutch oven with a lid 3 ½ quart size

Ingredients

Cheesy Polenta

1 tablespoon olive oil
¾ cup finely chopped onion
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
2 cups broth chicken or vegetable
2 cups milk
1 cup polenta or coarse cornmeal
½ cup grated parmesan cheese see cheese options below
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper or white pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Poached Eggs

6 large eggs

Garnishes and Options

1 cup canned pumpkin puree optional
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley or chives as garnish optional
½ teaspoon dried sage or rosemary mixed in with the broth
4 tablespoons toasted pumpkin seeds Recipe on this site

Instructions

Make Polenta (grits)

Add oil to a medium pot. When oil is warm, add onion and cook until it is soft and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute.
Add broth to pot and bring to a boil. Add cornmeal and stir well or whisk so it does not clump. Turn heat to low and cover. Cook polenta approximately 20 minutes, stirring several times so it does not stick on the bottom of the pan. If it looks or feels a little dry, add ¼ cup of water and stir until creamier.
When polenta is near done, taste to feel the texture. It should be creamy with a little bite from the coarse-ness of the grain. Adjust with any additional milk, water, or broth. When done, stir in the butter and parmesan cheese.

Poach eggs

When polenta is done, fill poaching pan half way with water and add non-stick insert. Spray egg inserts with non-stick. Place lid on pan and bring to a strong simmer. Crack an egg into each cup. Place lid back on pan and poach eggs. Medium poached eggs with softy runny yolks will take approximately 3 ½ minutes once covered.

Serve

Ladle ¾ cup of polenta into shallow bowls and top with poached eggs. Sprinkle with chopped chives or parsley if desired.

Notes

Cheese options

Instead of the parmesan, use grated sharp cheddar cheese, crumbled goat cheese, jalapeno jack, asiago, pecorino, gruyere, sharp cheddar, Monterey Jack, Jalapeno Jack, fontina, cream cheese, smoked gouda. Most good melting cheeses works.

Pumpkin option

If using the pumpkin option, add ½ cup of canned pumpkin at the end with the cheese and heat through.

Reheating cheesy polenta

As polenta holds in the refrigerator it becomes stiff. To reheat, add to a pot and stir or whisk in milk or water until the creaminess desired is achieved.

Nutrition note

The nutrition calculation does not include the eggs. Two large eggs provide 10 grams of fat and 12 grams of protein, and 187 grams of cholesterol.

Nutrition