Polenta Happiness!

I was so happy to learn that my Black Bean Pumpkin Polenta Chili won the Blogger Secret Ingredient contest this week. Thanks RhodeyGirl for picking Polenta! Check out all the other wonderful Polenta recipe entries. I can't decide which one to try first!

Pumpkin Polenta Cake

Today was a rough day and nothing seemed to go right. When I finally got home, I was in search of some major comfort food. Of course I turned to my old tried and true friend...PUMPKIN! I found this recipe on the allrecipes.com website. I made a couple of my own substitutions. I used agave nectar instead of brown sugar, and I substituted one tsp. pumpkin pie spice and one tsp. cinnamon in place of the listed spices. I also used lowfat vanilla yogurt instead of plain yogurt. WOW! This definitely ranks up there as one of my favorite pumpkin recipes. I guess it tasted more like a sweet pumpkin cornbread, but it definitely can be a dessert or an addition to dinner. It is the perfect blend of sweet corn, pumpkin, and spices. I topped it off with vanilla yogurt and a touch of cinnamon. This recipe serves 16, but I only made half of the recipe.

Pumpkin Polenta Cake

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Polenta-Cake/Detail.aspx

INGREDIENTS
2 cups canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons butter
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup low-fat plain yogurt
2 cups dry polenta

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium baking dish.
In a blender or food processor, blend pumpkin, butter, eggs, and egg whites. Mix in the brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Blend until smooth, and transfer to a medium bowl.
Mix yogurt and polenta into the pumpkin mixture. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
Bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool slightly before slicing.