Oven Baked Polenta with Sausage and Mushrooms

I found this while browsing www.tastespotting.com, but it's on www.weekofmenus.blogspot.com.  SOooooo fantastic!!!  Wow, I highly recommend this.  I used fresh white corn off the cob and breakfast pork sausage from Nugget Market.  Yum-O.

 

Oven Baked Polenta with Sausages and Mushroom
5 to 6 servings
adapted from Lazy Gourmet by Robin Donovan & Juliana Gallin

Ingredients
1 cup cornmeal (quick cooking polenta is fine as well)
3 ½ cups water
1 cup sweet corn kernels, fresh off the cob
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup mascarpone
2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons olive oil (more if needed)
4 shallots, finely chopped
5 cloves of garlic minced
8 oz sausages, diced or chopped into small, bite-sized pieces
10 oz of Crimini mushrooms, sliced or roughly chopped
salt and pepper to taste
5 leaves basil, chiffonade (or more to taste)

Method
Preheat oven to 350. Oil a 2 quart baking dish. Combine cornmeal, water, corn, salt and pepper, stirring to mix. Bake in a preheated 350 oven, uncovered, for 40 to 50 minutes. Stir in Parmesan, mascarpone, butter and return to oven, baking another 5 minutes.

While polenta is baking, cook sausage mushroom topping. Heave a heavy saute pan over medium high heat. Add olive oil, shallots, garlic and sausages, and cook until all the shallots are transparent and the sausage is caramelized, about 6 minutes. Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook for an additional 4 minutes, or until mushrooms are tender.

When polenta has finished baking, pour topping mixture over polenta. Return to oven for another 7 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. Sprinkle basil over the top and enjoy.