Photo Credit: Fontainebleau Miami Beach

Creamy Polenta with a Fricassee of Mushrooms from Scarpetta by Scott Conant

serves four
Ingredients
Creamy Polenta:
2 c heavy cream
2 c milk
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, more to taste
2/3 c cornmeal, preferably coarsely ground
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
1 tsp fresh chives, chopped (optional)
Fricassee of Mushrooms:
1/4 c olive oil
2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
2 c mixed domestic and wild mushrooms, sliced or cut into naturally occurring pieces
1/2 c chicken reduction
1 Tbsp fresh chives, snipped
1/2 tsp white truffle oil
Method
For the polenta: In a heavy-based saucepan, combine the cream and milk and heat over medium-high heat, just until small bubbles begin to appear on the surface. Add the salt. Whisk the cream and milk until very frothy. Add the polenta and continue to whisk the mixture as it comes to a boil. Continue whisking for an additional three minutes. Reduce heat to very low. Cover the pan and cook the polenta, stirring every five minutes or so, until the cornmeal is completely cooked and quite tender. (This usually takes one hour and 45 minutes! Be patient; even if the polenta has thickened and seems good after an hour, cooking it longer will make it even better.)  If you aren’t using a nonstick pan, as the polenta cooks, a skin will form on the bottom and sides of the pan. This will give the polenta a slightly toasty flavor.
For the fricassee: In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring until they just begin to color on the edges. Add the mushrooms and cook until the liquid is released. Add chicken reduction. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a bubbling simmer and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. (You can prepare the mushrooms ahead up to this point; reheat them over medium-high heat just before serving.) Toss the mushrooms with the chives and drizzle a little truffle oil over the mushrooms. Be careful not to cook the truffle oil more than a few seconds, because the flavor and the aroma will dissipate quickly.   
To serve: Just before serving, stir in the butter, grana Padano, and chives, if you decided to use them. The polenta should pour from the spoon as you serve it, and will thicken as it cools. If necessary, you can thin the polenta with a little milk just before serving. Divide the polenta among heated bowls or plates. Spoon some fricassee of mushrooms and its cooking juices over each serving of polenta. Enjoy!
Scarpetta by Scott Conant is located at 4441 Collins Avenue.