holidays & recipes: christmas breakfast with polenta
Our next recipe for our Christmas breakfast buffet menu is a hot cereal. Oh, no! Not mush again! No, not mush, but if you grew up watching “The Little Rascals”; reruns, of course, we aren’t quite that old, you may have had an aversion to the oatmeal your mother put in a bowl and served to you for breakfast. You might have looked at the oatmeal with disgust and declared, “I’m fed up with mush!”
Hot cereals were the overalls, work boots and flannel shirts of the breakfast world. Hot cereals were almost always lumpy, plain and boring. The high-heeled fashionistas of this breakfast world were definitely the ever popular sugary cereals and pop tarts. Hot cereals couldn’t stand up to (Well, actually hot cereals could stand up your spoon.) the brightly colored, sugary confections we loved for breakfast.
But, as we grow and mature. As our bodies begin to ache for no reason, we seek out a more nutritious breakfast and, in the winter months, a hot breakfast to warm up our beautiful, but aging, bodies. With a world of ideas at our finger tips we can find recipes to transform even the most mundane of all hot cereals. Oatmeal can be transformed into a delicious baked oatmeal breakfast treat. Add a little maple syrup and brown sugar to jazz up your Cream of Wheat (which is actually better with lumps…come on admit it…it is.) “What’s a grit?” Well, grits, they are showing up on the dinner table these days. Then, there is polenta. We are used to seeing polenta in savory dishes and we love it there. But, how about trying polenta for breakfast?
We love this recipe creamy polenta with honey and blueberries for the Christmas breakfast buffet. It is easy to serve for a large crowd as it can be served in a large bowl, blueberries and honey on the side or you can portion it out into beautiful glasses or bowls, placing the blueberries and honey on each serving. We have used fresh blueberries when available at a reasonable cost.
However, if you have frozen blueberries (from the baskets you picked in the summer) they will work just fine…even better as far as we are concerned. When the blueberries are thawed their juices flow out of them, almost creating syrup. The thawed, tart blueberries, warm creamy polenta and naturally sweet honey will blend together to create a very delicious “mush”.
This creamy polenta is really a blank canvas for any combination of recipes. We love the blueberries and honey, but you can add nuts, other fruits, etc. Let your imagination run wild. And, this recipe can easily be doubled.
Christmas Breakfast Buffet
1. Crème Brûlée French Toast Bake
2. Creamy Polenta with Honey and Blueberries
3. Dutch Baby
4. Savory Quiche
5. Baked Ham and Egg Cups
Breakfast Polenta Ingredients 2 cups whole milk ½ cup quick cooking polenta 2 tbs butter ½ cup blueberries ½ cup honey Directions 1. In a medium saucepan, bring milk to a boil. 2. Whisk in the polenta. Stir continually until creamy. 3. Stir in the butter. 4. Serve hot with the blueberries and the honey.
sara
December 13, 2011 at 2:11 pm //
This polenta looks amazing! I love polenta, but never thought to have it for breakfast, yum! :)
myfudo
December 14, 2011 at 4:10 pm //
Thank you Sara = )
Kiri W.
December 14, 2011 at 9:31 am //
Wow, I’ve never had sweet polenta, sounds delicious and creamy :) Great morning treat.
myfudo
December 14, 2011 at 4:11 pm //
Thank you Kiri!
Devendra
August 28, 2012 at 8:41 pm //
Welcome back to the party Amy! It hasn’t been the same without you. I’ve made those dotnus several times now too. I think I ate almost the entire batch myself last time they are dangerous! I’ve also rediscovered my love for oatmeal we were on a break for awhile, but we are flirting again more and more. Must be the weather. Purple oatmeal is my favorite!