Nonnie's Baked Polenta

Total Time: 14 hrs Preparation Time: 7 hrs Cook Time: 7 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 3 quarts tomato sauce
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 2 medium yellow onions, coarsely chopped
• 1/2-1 head garlic, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup dehydrated mushroom pieces
• 1 large black olives, coarsely chopped (optional)
• 1/4 cup italian seasoning
• 2 tablespoons dried basil
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 (2 lb) rump roast
• 3 cups dried polenta
• 12 cups water
• 1 1/2 lbs mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Recipe

• 1 combine tomato products, mushrooms, olives, and seasonings in large crock pot and turn on low.
• 2 brown onions and garlic with olive oil until soft.
• 3 transfer to crock pot using the same pan, brown each side of the roast 5-7 minutes.
• 4 transfer to crock pot making sure the sauce covers the roast completely.
• 5 cook for 6 hours.
• 6 remove roast.
• 7 roast edges should"flake" then pulled with fork.
• 8 shred about 1/3 of roast and return to the sauce.
• 9 the remaining intact roast makes the best sandwiches or a side dish to pasta served with this sauce.
• 10 if you find the sauce to be bitter, add finely shredded carrot to taste.
• 11 allow sauce to cool completely.
• 12 set aside.
• 13 combine and cook polenta and water over low heat in large pot.
• 14 the water should be mostly absorbed and it should look like cream of wheat.
• 15 let polenta cool (it will firm up).
• 16 set aside.
• 17 combine cheeses.
• 18 set aside.
• 19 preheat oven to 400 and spray non-stick cooking spray to 9x13x2 baking dish generously.
• 20 begin layering with thin layer of sauce.
• 21 then 1/2 inch thick of polenta, then cheese, then sauce again.
• 22 repeat polenta-cheese-sauce at least once or until dish is nearly at the top.
• 23 top with cheese.
• 24 cover with foil and prepare oven for probable"spill over".
• 25 bake covered for 45 minutes.
• 26 finish by baking another 15 minutes uncovered or until the middle is hot.