What is Polenta?
Polenta, sometimes referred to as Italian grits, is made from coarse, stone-ground cornmeal. Like the Southern American classic grits, polenta is a hearty porridge with a grainy texture. It serves as an excellent foundation for a casserole, can be fried and served sweet for breakfast, or served as a porridge with beans, vegetables, or meat and gravy. This delicious cheesy polenta casserole recipe is from Northern Italy and reminds me of lasagna due to its layered structure. It’s a little less fussy than lasagna, and the leftovers are delicious.
Italian Recipe Exchange
This Cheesy Polenta Casserole recipe comes from our adopted Italian family in Perugia, Italy. We hosted two Italian foreign exchange students during their 4th year in high school. The first student was in the 1999 -2000 school year. Four years later, we hosted his younger brother! It was a remarkable cultural experience; more importantly, we gained a family in Italy. The educational exchange was profound for the students, but our family benefited greatly. The oldest son loved grocery shopping with me, and we exchanged many recipes. Their mother was from Brescia, so I gathered this recipe from her family since polenta dishes generally come from the northern part of the country.
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Cheesy Polenta Casserole Recipe Steps
1
Cook polenta until it pulls away from the sides of the pan.
2
Smooth the polenta into a buttered casserole dish.
3
Spoon browned Italian sausage over polenta.
4
Add the tomato layer and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
5
Add the mozzarella cheese layer.
6
Bake and serve.
How to Store and Reheat Leftover Polenta Casserole
Make extras of this Italian Casserole because the leftovers are delicious. Allow any leftovers to cool on the counter (cool enough to touch). Store in a container with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator for up to four days. I like to store them in individual pieces because they warm better in the microwave in smaller sections.
Reheat individual pieces, covered with a paper towel or microwave-safe lid, for 1 minute at medium temperature. Continue heating on medium for 30-second intervals until heated through.
Polenta is Gluten-Free
If you are looking to expand your grain variety, polenta is a great option. For more information on reducing your wheat intake, read Gluten-Free Menu Plan: Recipes and Tips.
Ingredients Notes
A great recipe can be underwhelming with mediocre ingredients. The following tips guide you through what to look for at the market to make this delicious polenta casserole:
- Broth can be homemade or store-bought. Low-salt chicken or vegetable broth works well. Some polenta recipes use milk, water, or a combination of both. I prefer to use broth only. The recipe contains a generous amount of dairy.
- Stone-ground polenta or grits. I use Bob’s Red Mills Yellow Corn Polenta. Italian polenta can be found at a specialty market. You can also use yellow grits, but avoid packages labeled as quick or instant. Stone-ground polenta uses less processing and has a coarser texture. Cornmeal is for baking, and NOT for this recipe. You may find shelf-stable pre-made polenta available in the pasta aisle to save some steps. It is generally made with water and is less rich than this homemade recipe.
- Parmesan cheese is best grated just before mixing it into the dish, but you can use pre-grated cheese for convenience.
- Italian sausage: Purchase it in bulk, a tube, or 3-4 links to make one pound, and remove the meat from the casing. Use mild, hot, or a combination of both. I use sweet Italian sausage and add 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper.
- Diced Tomatoes: Use high-quality, peeled Italian tomatoes. They can be whole, chopped, or crushed. Cans that say “product of Italy” taste much better than domestic tomatoes. Another feature that I like is that they are BPA-free and organic. Parade did a great blind taste test of 16 canned tomatoes. I buy cans on sale that feature San Marzano. They all passed my kitchen test.
- Mozzarella Cheese— Grated or sliced mozzarella will work. Feel free to experiment with fresh mozzarella.
Make-Ahead Polenta Casserole
After assembling, cover the casserole and place in the fridge. Uncover and add 5 minutes to the baking time.
Baked Polenta Casserole
This easy dinner idea comes together quickly and is family friendly and crowd pleasing dish.
Serve Polenta Casserole With
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Cheesy Polenta Casserole with Spicy Italian Sausage
This delicious layered cheesy polenta casserole is comfort food at its best! The perfect combination of smooth and creamy polenta with spicy Italian sausage. Be sure to make plenty because leftovers are great. Polenta is similar to cheesy grits, a classic Southern dish.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Pork
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Polenta* see note
- 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth, unsalted
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon sugar, optional
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup stone-ground polenta or corn grits
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Sausage and Tomato
- 1 lb uncooked, hot, or sweet Italian pork, chicken or turkey sausage in casing or tube
- 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional
- 28 ounces of Italian San Marzano diced tomatoes with juice (2 14-oz cans) or 28-oz cans or jars of ready-made pizza or marinara sauce; If using whole canned tomatoes, slice them into bite-size pieces and include the juice.
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon Italian herbs, omit if using pizza sauce
- 8 ounces of mozzarella cheese, sliced or grated, or 8 ounces of fresh mozzarella cut into 1/4 inch slices
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375º. Butter a 2.5-quart ovenproof casserole dish.
- Make Polenta – Combine the broth, butter, sugar, and salt in a heavy saucepan and simmer. Slowly add the corn grits in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Lower the heat and continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan, about 15 minutes. Add the Parmesan cheese and press the polenta mixture into the casserole dish.
- Make Sausage – Remove sausage from the casing or packaging. Heat a medium-sized skillet, and sauté the sausage, breaking it up with the back of a spoon. Cook until brown, crumbly, and thoroughly cooked. Layer sausage over polenta with a slotted spoon
- Layer Tomato over the sausage, then season and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
- Top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- If desired, place under the broiler for 1 minute. Repeat every 30 seconds to achieve the desired browning. Let it stand for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
*Fast-track this recipe by using ready-made, shelf-stable polenta. It is available in the Italian Food section.
Make Ahead Directions. Assemble the casserole completely through step 5, cover, and refrigerate until ready to cook. Add 5-10 minutes to the cooking time.
19 responses to “Cheesy Polenta Casserole with Italian Sausage”
This is an excellent recipe and also works well for a breakfast dish. I used ready-made polenta, Italian chicken sausage, Romano and Monterey Jack cheese since that’s what was on hand. It turned out great.
Patty, thanks for the review. I love that you used on hand substitutions. Buon appetito :)
Made this last night and it is the ultimate comfort food. Used the shelf ready polenta and it was easy. SO delicious!
Lynn, it is great to learn that you enjoyed Cheesy Polenta Casserole and used ready-made polenta to fast track the recipe. I appreciate your review so much.
Wow this sounds like fantastic comfort food. Thank you!
Lynn, I hope you try it soon. It’s a favorite at my home.
My Italian Mom made polenta and used sauce [not diced tomatoes], swiss cheese and whole sausages. I would like to use marinara sauce instead of diced tomatoes. I’ll crumble the sausages [bought out of the casings]. And I’ll experiment with maybe half Fontina, half mozzarella. I have a little swiss cheese so I may devote a quarter pan to try that since that’s what Mom used. My brother and I are still a little puzzled about the use of swiss cheese but I’m guessing that her mom may have done it that way? I remember she fretted about the cooking of the polenta as some brands of cornmeal defied her. Bot did she get mad! Using your recipe as the basis for my attempt.
Claudio, I love the story of your mom’s cooking, and I am so pleased you found the recipe to experiment and replicate her dish. Polenta is from North Italy, so the Swiss cheese makes sense. It’s an excellent melting cheese for casserole. The recipe for Cheesy Polenta Casserole is very flexible, and your variation sounds delicious – please update us on your cooking result. I also substitute also enjoy it with pizza sauce and fresh mozzarella. Polenta can be tricky – it can also be called grits, but stay clear of corn meal since you won’t get good results. If you have one, post a picture on your Instagram or Facebook account and tag @suppersanity. Buon Appetito!!
Hi Kim, love the appetizer idea. Thanks for reviewing and so glad it’s easy and delicious for you.
I loved this recipe! So delicious and can be made as an appetizer also, which will be gobbled up as soon as you bring it out and serve it
Very easy to make especially if using the fast track tip – add a salad and you’ve got a complete delicious meal
I guarantee everyone will love it!
Hi Kim, love the appetizer idea. Thanks for reviewing and so glad it’s easy and delicious for you.
Made this for dinner tonight. So easy and so delicious! Great meal for pleasing a wide variety of pallets!
Awe thanks for sharing your success with the dish.
Have made this and it’s fantastic! Thanks for sharing the history behind this wonderful recipe.
Lynn, so happy to learn you like the history and the recipe. Buon Appetito!!
This is delicious comfort food! Flavors compliment each other! This is one of Karen’s recipes we crave.
Thanks Julie, I am honored that this recipe is in your meal rotation!
My husband even liked this and he doesn’t like much.
😊 great.