Beach Playdate: Sausage and Red Pepper Polenta Cobbler

The other night, as I was driving to dinner with the girls, I glanced to my left and watched the sun set over the ocean.  And I thought about how incredibly lucky I am.  It's something Thatdad used to talk about all the time, being lucky to live in such a beautiful place.  Lucky that I'm close enough to go on weekly runs to the beach.  Lucky to have a great group of friends to go to dinner with.  Lucky that Thatbaby already has a group of friends to grow up with.  Lucky that we have playgrounds right on the beach for him to enjoy all of them above!

Thatbaby is going through a swing phase right now.  He loves swinging and gets pretty upset when his turn is up.  As for me, I think I can give you a pretty fair rundown of every park within a 15 mile radius of our home.

Also?  I'm going through a polenta phase right now.  It's like Thatbaby's swing phase, except everyone benefits.  And I don't get too upset when we eat something other than polenta.  In general, most polenta recipes involve cooking it until it's nice and creamy, then stirring in something delicious like cheese.   So I was very excited to see this polenta recipe pop up on Jeff's blog.  A savory, polenta cobbler!  This feels like such a southern dish with the corn, sausage, and bell pepper.  And it is incredibly delicious.  It's a definite comfort dish, all rich and stew-y.  And the polenta topping is the perfect biscuit-y addition.

Sausage and Red Pepper Polenta Cobbler (From Jeff's Plate)

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

4 chicken sausage, chopped

Salt and Pepper

1 onion, sliced

2 bell peppers, sliced

1 3/4 cup flour

2 cups chicken broth

2 Tbsp tomato paste

3 cups spinach

1/2 cup polenta

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

6 Tbsp Butter

1 3/4 cup Heavy Cream

1. Preheat the oven to 375. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the sausage and cook until browned.  Remove and set aside.
2. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes or until softened. 
3. Add the pepper strips and cook for 5 more minutes.
4.  While the onions and peppers are cooking, whisk together 1/4 cup of flour and tomato paste.
5.  Slowly whisk in the chicken stock until combined. 
6. Add to the onion mixture along with the spinach and reserved sausage. Stir in to combine, and cook for about 2 minutes until thickened and the spinach is lightly wilted.  Remove from heat. 
7. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 1/2 of flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and a pinch of salt.
8.  Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles course crumbs. 
9.  Add the Parmesan cheese and stir in to combine. 
10.  Add the milk, stirring until a rough dough forms.
11.  Drop 6-8 large mounds of the cornmeal mixture onto the sausage mixture with about an inch of spacing between them.
12.   Brush the top of the biscuits with milk, then place in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the mixture is bubbling.