Torta di Polenta, Gorgonzola, e Verze
This is an ideal preparation for a crowd. You can assemble the tart the day before and then bake it the day of your gathering, and it also reheats well. It’s delicious with Gorgonzola and cabbage, but you can vary the filling in this torta however you wish. I love vegetables with polenta but you can treat this cake like a pizza and stuff it with sliced grilled sausages, mozzarella, and some tomato sauce to moisten the filling. I also like using a leftover ragù or a combination of other sautéed vegetables with the potato-and-cheese base. Save the extra sauce and serve it on the side when slicing the torta di polenta.
— Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali
• ON-DEMAND: Listen to Faith and Lidia talk about this recipe during Lidia’s guest appearance on The Faith Middleton Food Schmooze®. •
Want more Lidia? Listen to Faith’s conversation with Lidia about her new memoir, My American Dream.
Excerpted from Lidia’s Celebrate Like an Italian: 220 Foolproof Recipes That Make Every Meal a Party by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Published by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC. Copyright © 2017 Tutti a Tavola, LLC. Photo by Steve Giralt.
- Basic Polenta (see recipe note below for recipe), hot
- Fine dried bread crumbs, for the pan
- 2 medium Idaho potatoes peeled and quartered (about 1-½ pounds)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more for the cooking water
- 1 small head savoy cabbage
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
- 4 cloves garlic lightly crushed and peeled
- 1 Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 1-1/2 cups crumbled Gorgonzola or grated Taleggio or Montasio cheese
- 1/2 cup graded Grana Padano
- Butter a 9-inch round cake pan. Pour the just-cooked polenta into the greased cake pan. Let stand until cool, then refrigerate until completely chilled, about 4 to 5 hours.
- When the polenta is firm, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 10-inch, 4-inch-tall springform pan, coat with bread crumbs, and shake any excess out of the pan. Put the potatoes in a large saucepan with ample salted water. Bring to a simmer, and cook 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, remove any wilted or yellow leaves from the cabbage and cut out the core. Cut the cabbage into 1-inch chunks. Add these to the pot with the potatoes, and cook until both vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes more.
- Drain the vegetables thoroughly. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the thyme and garlic, and cook until garlic is just golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cabbage-potato mixture, the salt, and the pepper flakes. Cook, turning the vegetables occasionally, until the liquid is evaporated and the vegetables begin to sizzle. Mash the vegetables coarsely with the spoon as you turn them, leaving plenty of lumps. Be careful not to scorch the mixture—just cook it until the liquid has evaporated. Remove the garlic cloves (if they haven’t mashed into the mixture) and discard.
- Invert the cooled polenta cake onto a cutting board. With a long, thin knife, slice the cake into three even horizontal layers. Place the top layer upside down in the bottom of the buttered 10-by-4-inch springform pan. Top with half of the potato-cabbage mixture and half of the Gorgonzola. Top the cheese with the center layer of polenta, and top that with the remaining potato-cabbage mixture and Gorgonzola. Place the bottom layer of the polenta cake upside down over the torta and press gently. Brush the top of the torta with the 2 tablespoons butter, and sprinkle with the grated Grana Padano. Bake the torta until the top layer of cheese is lightly browned and the torta is heated through, about 40 minutes.
- Remove, and let cool 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the sides of the springform pan, and cut the torta into slices to serve.
Lidia's Basic Polenta
5 cups water (or half water and half milk, for a richer taste)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 fresh bay leaf
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1-1/2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
In a large saucepan, combine the water (or water and milk), olive oil, bay leaf, and salt, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Very slowly, sift the cornmeal by handfuls into the pot, through the fingers of one hand, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or whish to remove any lumps.
Once all of the cornmeal is added, adjust the heat so just a few lazy bubbles pop to the surface. Continue to cook and stir until the polenta is smooth and thick and pulls away from the sides of the pan as it is stirred, about 30 to 35 minutes.
Discard the bay leaf and proceed to the first step in the Polenta Torta recipe above.
The size of the pans is confusing. Are you sure those are the right measurements for that amount of polenta?
Yes. You’ll use the 9-in pan simply for storing your cooked polenta in the fridge while it firms up.
Lidia used the 10″ pan to form the polenta and to shape the torta when she prepared the dish on her show..
Lidia used a 10″ springform pan. Makes a huge difference.
Any idea of the calorie and fat count?
No, I’m sorry. The nutritional information isn’t listed.
Polenta is so versatile. Use the recipe but change it to your liking or dietary restrictions. Here’s nutrition information on polenta:
https://www.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats/recipes/2009/07/meet-this-grain-polenta
I bet you could put the ingredients into MyFitnesPal and it’ll give you the calorie count.
If you’re worried about calories or fat, I would probably not follow Lidia’s recipes. They are delicious and more times than not, full fat and high calories. Just saying.
What if you don’t have a spring form Pan?
This article about spring form pan alternatives might be helpful. Especially the last suggestion: a disposable foil pan that you can cut-around when you’re done. Make sure you’ve got 10 inches around and that the sides of your alt-pan are high enough (at least 4 inches). Honestly though, anything other than a spring form pan will make cutting and serving the torta neatly a challenge. You might want to experiment with a square pan instead, making a layered polenta lasagna, in a way. Though, I’m not sure what the measurements would be.
I watched your show, went out and bought all the ingredients. As a kid I had a dish of polenta with sausage and tomato sauce. It was a winter dinner, quite good. Grated cheese helps too.
Going to make mini ones for Super bowl Sunday…bon appetit. Maria from Italy.
I just watched the TV show for this Torta. Lidia said to tent it with foil and bake 45 minutes, uncover it and bake another 20 minutes. We rewinded it to check the temp and time.
In the online recipe you do not cover it and it only bakes 40 minutes.
This is a significant difference!
Please clarify, thanks.
Hi Colleen. The recipe here online is as printed in Lidia’s book.
Following the TV baking directions (tent/un-tent) works perfectly. Also, make sure the potatoes are nearly mashed—large chunks of potato detract from the dish.
Freezes very well, with reheat in the oven.
Thank you. I think it’s extremely helpful to have someone who has actually made the recipe and can speak to correct measurements, ingredients, and any other inconsistencies before posting the recipes.
I have not been successful in finding anyone who sells a 10″ diameter, 4″ high spring-form pan. Where could I purchase one?
Dearest Lidia,
Saw you make this on PBS and was quite tempted to try this myself, especially since I had store prepared polenta logs on my shelf. I admit, I took a big shortcut and made individual polenta cakes. I placed sliced polenta into ramekins, avoiding the scary step of making my own. Results were great and I have you to thank. What a clever fun recipe. Thank you for your efforts. I really enjoy your show.
My Salaams,
Nancy Warner
Larkspur Ca
What is the temp? I can’t find it in the recipe
For the torta, it’s 400 (see step 2. . .the preheat your oven step).
I was inspired to make this dish after watching the TV show. I was intimidated with the slicing of the polenta into three discs. My solution was to put the cooked polenta into three cake pans. Worked perfectly!! My final product didn’t seem to be hot in the center even after putting it back into the oven for 15 more minutes. It was beautiful but not hot. Next time, and there will be a next time, I will not put the polenta into the fridge – just let it cool and set at room temp. Or bring them out of the fridge and get them to room temp. Be sure that the cabbage-potato mixture is at least warm to start before you put the package into the oven.
I did tent the torte – and I doubled the garlic and most was left in the mixture. I used Yukon Gold potatoes and did not peel them.
My guests loved this dish – served with a salad and lovely red wine.
Can I freeze after baking
A listener in the comments section did freeze it and reported that it reheated nicely.
If you use the dental floss method of slicing the torta, which’s you can find online, was actually much easier way to cut the polena cake into thirds.