Polenta Bites Make A Splash Without A Lot Of Trouble

Party Polenta Bites take only a handful of ingredients - all pantry staples - yet they look spectacular. Accompany with toppings of sour cream mixed with chopped green onions, warm prepared marinara sauce, prepared pesto sauce or roasted red pepper strips.

Party Polenta Bites

Recipe from Sonoma Dried Tomatoes.

Two (14-1/2-ounce) cans reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1/3 cup dried tomato bits or dried tomato halves, snipped into small pieces

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons olive oil

Coat a 9- by 13-inch baking pan with vegetable cooking spray. Line pan with plastic wrap, allowing long sides to extend over edges.

In medium saucepan, bring broth to boil. Whisk in cornmeal and tomato bits. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking constantly about 5 minutes until mixture is very thick. Remove from heat; whisk in cheese to blend thoroughly.

Spread polenta evenly in pan; cover loosely with waxed paper and refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours. Lifting edges of plastic wrap, remove polenta from pan to cutting surface. Cut into squares, diamonds or rectangles, or cut out with cookie cutters.

Heat broiler. Place polenta on baking sheet, brush lightly with oil. Place about 4 inches under broiler. Watching closely, broil about 1 minute, just until lightly browned. Serve hot.

Yield: About 36 appetizers.

Nutrition information per serving: 33 calories, 2 grams fat (55 percent fat calories), no cholesterol, 4 grams carbohydrate, 1 gram protein. 39 milligrams sodium.