Polenta and Marsala Mushrooms 🍄

This dish was perfect for me. I haven’t eaten meat or chicken in about a year and a half, and one of my fave chicken dishes evah was Chicken Marsala. I love the rich earthiness of the mushrooms, the Marsala wine, and the savory onions and garlic all simmered together. Fresh thyme is always a must for me when working with these flavors. It’s pops the grounded feeling of the other components. Literally, mushrooms are so of the earth, so an above ground fresh herb works nicely here. These mushrooms would top any protein beautifully, even eggs, but I stayed vegan here by using polenta. Polenta cooks so quickly, is hearty, natural, and has that lovely yellow color. It’s visually appealing mush. This was the perfect lunch to serve to the crew at our last photo shoot. It makes a great main or appetizer.

Ingredients:

Four cups of vegetable stock (one box)

One cup quick cooking polenta

1 tbsp truffle oi

Two tbsp extra virgin olive oil

One tbsp packed fresh thyme leaves (just slide the leaves down off the stems)

Half a cup Marsala wine

12 to 16 oz of mixed exotic mushrooms such as Cremini/oyster/shiitake

One medium onion halved then sliced very thin

Three garlic cloves sliced very thin length wise

Prepare polenta according to package directions using the vegetable stock. In a large sauté pan, heat the oils. Add the onions and sauté until fragrant and translucent. Deglaze with additional tablespoons of extra Marsala wine or vegetable stock as needed. Don’t let the pan dry out. Add the garlic and cook for another two minutes. Add the mushrooms, salt to taste (I’d say a tsp),stir, then add the half cup of Marsala. Sauté until all is blended together really well and most of the wine has evaporated. Add the thyme and let it do its thing for several minutes on a low flame. Divide the polenta into bowls and top with the mushroom mixture. Garnish with a sprig of fresh thyme if you care .