This polenta with spinach is an easy and inexpensive dinner solution for busy weeknights that cooks up in less than 30 minutes. Serve it up with a salad or soup for a quick meal everyone will love.
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add onions and cook, stirring frequently until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add the red pepper flakes, garlic, and orange pepper and cook for 2 more minutes. Finally, add the spinach and cook for 5 more minutes, until everything is cooked and heated through.
In a medium saucepan, bring the water, salt, tarragon, mustard powder, and black pepper to a boil and slowly whisk in cornmeal. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until mixture boils and spits cornmeal out all over the place, about 1-2 minutes.
Pour the spinach mixture into the cornmeal and quickly mix until well incorporated. Pour everything into the prepared pan and press down evenly to smooth the top. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing into 8 pieces. Serve immediately.
Notes
Adding the cornmeal: Add slowly, stirring constantly so the polenta cooks up without any lumps.
Squeeze spinach: Thaw out the spinach and drain it well before adding it to the skillet. Frozen spinach tends to hold a lot of water.
Don’t have spinach? That’s ok! Use any other frozen greens such as collard greens or kale instead. You can also experiment with other grated or chopped vegetables such as mushrooms, cauliflower, and broccoli.