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By JOHN CARAFOLI
Over the years I have been fascinated observing peasant food transformed into high cuisine.

This is especially true of some of the basic foods I was served as a child growing up in a traditional Italian household. Twelve to fifteen years ago, polenta never would have appeared on a menu.

In the ensuing years it has been elevated to what many regard as a fancy dish.

A food once considered humbler than bread that was served on a wooden board in the middle of the family table is now presented on porcelain dishes in high-end restaurants.

Curious to know more about the origins of this versatile yellow staple, I checked out Anna Del Conte's book, "Gastronomy of Italy" (Prentice Hall Press, 1987).

Polenta's origins

In it she writes, "The Friuliani" (inhabitants of a region above the Veneto) "in northeast Italy were the first to make flour with the corn from the New World that was unloaded at Rialto in Venice. It soon became popular in northern Italy, resolving the feeding problems of the people living in the mountains, who were very poor. Polenta was eaten by itself, often being the only food they had" in the early 19th Century. Even today, polenta is an essential part of the Italian diet. In the Asti district (Piedmont), there is an annual harvest time festival of polentonne, or "big polenta," at which a banquet of polenta and various meats is served to huge gatherings.

Polenta can provide the foundation for an appetizer, side dish, or main course such as a light lunch or a festive winter meal. Its versatility is endless. Like pasta and rice, polenta accents and absorbs any flavor it is matched with. Soft polenta can be eaten with butter and cheese as an appetizer. It can be used in sauces, as illustrated in the Sautéed Mushrooms and Gorgonzola sauce recipe. I like to grill or broil polenta slices and serve them along side my Seafood Cacciatora. The slices are also delicious fried in an iron skillet with a little butter and oil, topped with a fried egg and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese as a breakfast treat. Or try cooking it to the consistency of cream of wheat and eat it for breakfast topped with milk and honey.

Old-fashioned heartiness

For a hearty and inexpensive meal on a cold winter night, serve polenta the old-fashioned way like my Northern Italian grandmother used to. I remember her turning out the polenta on to a board, letting it cool slightly, cutting it with a thick cotton thread, and serving it topped with her ragu sauce. You can recreate this Italian classic by spreading cooked polenta thickly across a large board in the middle of the table and topping it with a cacciatore sauce and Parmesan cheese. Seat your family or guests around the table, pour a rich full-bodied wine, and invite each person to choose a corner and begin eating. It's friendly and delicious!

Basic Polenta

The authentic way to make polenta is by boiling water or broth in a special unlined copper pot, called a paiolo, that hangs by the stove or fireplace in Italian kitchen and is used exclusively for preparing polenta. Many years ago I was given two wonderful paiolo, one large and one small, as a gift on one of my trips to Italy. If you don't happen to have a paiolo handy, a large, heavy pot will do fine.

1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal

2 cups cold water

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

5 cups water

In a bowl combine the cornmeal, cold water and salt; mix and set aside. In a large pot bring the water to a boil. Add the oil and stir in the cornmeal. With an electric or hand beater, beat the cornmeal until it starts to thicken (about 3 to 4 minutes). This will keep the polenta smooth and free of lumps. Cook it over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for about 20 minutes. Then cover the pot and leave it on the heat for 3 minutes more without stirring. Shake the pot a little. This will allow some steam to get under the polenta so it will detach itself from the bottom of the pot easily.

Depending on how you are going to use it, you can either pour the polenta out onto a board or cookie sheet, or pour it in a large bowl to let it cool.

Polenta Broccoli Pie

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 pound broccoli florets, washed and chopped

Dash of red pepper flakes (optional)

Salt and fresh ground pepper

1/2 pound Gruyere cheese, grated

Polenta (recipe above) poured into 8-inch spring form pan and cooled

Tomato sauce to serve on side

Combine the oil, butter and garlic in a large skillet and cook for 2 minutes. Add the broccoli, chicken broth, pepper flakes (if using) and simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes or until broccoli is well done. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Remove the polenta from the pan. With a string or a large knife, slice it horizontally into 2 layers. Clip the pan back together and butter it, and return the bottom layer of polenta to the pan. Cover it with broccoli and slices of fontina cheese. Layer the second slice of polenta on top and brush it with butter. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes, until heated through. Remove the pan from the oven, brush with more butter, and put it under the broiler just long enough to brown the top. Let it rest 5 to 8 minutes, cut, then serve with a light tomato sauce on the side and a green salad.

Sauteed Mushrooms Over Soft Polenta

This dish is delicious made with any variety of mushrooms be creative. Here I used shitake and crimini. If using a dried variety prepare as follows: Steep in 1/2cup wine and 1/2 cup water for 20 minutes. Drain, reserve liquid for another time, slice the mushrooms and proceed with the recipe.

1 clove garlic

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

4 ounces shitake mushrooms, sliced (discard stems)

4 ounces crimini mushrooms, sliced

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup chicken broth

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Sauté the garlic in the olive oil and butter for 1 minute then add the mushrooms thyme, white wine. Cook on high heat until liquid evaporates and the mushrooms start to brown about 8 to 10 minutes.

Stir in the chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Cook until liquid evaporates.

To serve, place a heaping spoon full of soft polenta on four appetizer-sized plates and divide the mushrooms equally over the polenta and top with the Gorgonzola sauce. Serves four as an appetizer

Gorgonzola Sauce

This sauce is both creamy and piquant, two qualities seldom combined in Italian cooking. Its mild piquancy comes from Gorgonzola, Italy's incomparable blue cheese. The sauce works best when the Gorgonzola dolce is creamy, mellow and makes a delicious sauce.

5 ounces Gorgonzola dolce (look for cheese that is white in color, soft, and preferably, recently cut)

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons butter

Dash of freshly ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground white pepper

In a small saucepan, combine the Gorgonzola, cream, milk, butter, and salt. Turn the heat to low. Mash the Gorgonzola with a wooden spoon, and stir to incorporate it into the cream, milk and butter. Cook for about 1 minute, until the sauce has a dense, creamy consistency. Turn off the heat and keep warm until ready to serve.

Makes 1 cup.

Polenta With White Clam (Quahog) Sauce

3 pounds (about 13) quahogs

12 cherrystone clams

1 large onion, chopped

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme

Fresh ground pepper

3/4 to 1 cup dry white wine

Polenta (recipe above)

Parmesan cheese

Minced parsley for garnish

Sauce:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 carrots, minced

2 cloves garlice, minced

Red perrper flakes, to taste

1 cup fresh parsley, minced

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/4 cup white wine

Wash and scrub the quahogs and the cherrystone clams. Put the quahogs in a large pot with the onion, parsley, thyme, pepper and wine. Place the cherrystone clams in a bowl and set aside. Cover the pot and steam the quahogs until they open, about 10 to 12 minutes. (discard any that do not open.) Remove the meat from the shells, mince it, and set aside; there should be about 1 1/4 cups.

Put the onions, parsley and the liquid they cooked in into a blender or food processor fitted with a steal blade. Puree. Set aside.

To make the sauce, in a large saucepan combine the olive oil and carrots, cook over medium heat until carrots are tender about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, pepper flakes and cook until garlic starts to turn light brown. Add the lemon juice and white wine cook for 4 minutes, then add the onion-parsley-cooking water puree. Add the fresh parsley. Cook over high heat for 12 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the cherrystone clams, cover and cook until the clams have opened. Turn off the heat, stir in the minced quahogs and cover the pan. Do not cook the quahogs further, or they will be come rubbery.

Spoon the quahog sauce over slices of warm polenta garnishing with the cherrystone clams (three per person) and sprinkled with fresh parsley. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Serves 4

(Published: February 4, 2004)