INGREDIENT CORNER

The great culinary encyclopedia, Larousse Gastronomique defines maize (or corn) as "A cereal with white, yellow or rust-colored grains, rich in starch, which are attached to a cob, protected by layers of fibrous leaves with tasseled tops." I couldn't have said it any better, so I won't even try.

There are three varieties of maize. The first, and most common, is sweetcorn. This is what is sold as corn on the cob and is grown to be a culinary vegetable. It is harvested while still unripe and should be eaten ASAP before the sugar can turn to starch. It is available fresh, canned or frozen. Now, I don't normally eat vegetables that are not fresh, but the frozen option of sweetcorn is actually pretty good. Fresh cobs can be boiled, roasted or grilled. Baby corn is harvested when immature. Sold fresh, canned or pickled, it is great in salads and some Asian dishes. The next variety, as any movie-goer knows, is called popcorn. It is prepared by heating the hard grains in oil until the water inside boils, causing the kernel to explode. This is a topic for a possible future column.

The final variety is called Grain Maize. It is hard and bright yellow with a fairly small cob and is usually ground into flour, meal or semolina and used to make bread and other baked goods. The flour, (aka cornstarch) is a common thickener. Incidentally, this is the type of maize used for Bourbon Whiskey, corn oil, and high-fructose corn syrup. When it is ground coarser, we have cornmeal, the topic of this discussion. Steel ground yellow cornmeal has had the husk and germ of the kernel almost completely removed. If stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, it can be stored almost indefinitely. Stone ground cornmeal; on the other hand, retains some of the hull and germ, lending a little more flavor and nutrition to recipes. It is more perishable, but will store longer if refrigerated. One variety of Grain Maize has blue-black grains, which is ground to make blue cornmeal.

Our first recipe is a delicious accompaniment to anything from chili to soup to barbeque.

Polenta has traditionally been the humble food of Northern Italian peasants. It was a staple to the diets of working class people because of its simplicity and heartiness. In its earliest days, it was made from grain, usually millet or spelt. Today it is typically made with stone ground corn meal, but it can be found in Italy made with dried legumes, such as fava beans and chickpeas. This simple dish has been an essential element of the Italian diet for centuries.

Defying its humble beginnings, polenta is now found in high-end, gourmet restaurants and touted by foodies as a fancy, sophisticated dish that is also easy and inexpensive to make.

Polenta is an extremely versatile dish. It can be served as a main course or a side dish and also makes a great breakfast. It can be served fresh out of the pot, nice and creamy, or cooled until firm then sliced and fried. Polenta can be grilled and topped with mushrooms and leeks, grilled peppers or tomatoes, and served as an appetizer like bruschetta. It can be mixed with Gouda cheese, green chiles, whole corn kernels, then made into pancakes and fried -- an excellent accompaniment for lamb chops or chicken. Polenta Fries (like French fries) are crispy and served with marinara sauce. You can find it sliced and grilled and incorporated into a stew or traditional dish like coq au vin.

If you love to serve it creamy and topped with delicious pasta sauce and slow cooked beef short ribs or lamb shanks, here is a great recipe that uses few ingredients, is easy to make and delivers amazing results! It's guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser.

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