Mascarpone Polenta with Sausage and Peppers

Creamy Mascarpone Polenta is topped with sautéed sausage, bell peppers, and onions in this easy recipe! Perfect for date night in or a quick weeknight meal.

Creating This Mascarpone Polenta Recipe

Despite my Italian heritage, I’ve never had a bite of Polenta before last month. Truth be told, I wasn’t even one hundred percent sure what it was.

My neighbor, also Italian, is always raving about how polenta is his favorite dish his mother makes for him. To him it is pure Italian comfort food. So, after trying my first bite while out with friends last month, I decided that this was indeed something the goodLife {eats} kitchen needed to experience!

I didn’t do the responsible thing and search for a recipe that was highly rated before trying Polenta out for our Sunday dinner. I didn’t even ask my neighbor how his mom made her recipe.

Instead, you could say that I threw caution to the wind and made it up as I went — a method that often works great for me when I actually have a clue as to what I’m making.

I had very few assumptions about what this dish would be like, if Eric would like it or not, and if the end result would even be blog worthy. Let me tell you this: positive on all accounts.

Rich with flavor, filling on the tummy, husband approved, and definitely blog worthy. Here is how I imagined a bowl of creamy Italian polenta on a late Sunday afternoon.

Ingredients for Mascarpone Polenta

This cheesy polenta recipe has two components: the mascarpone polenta itself and the sautéed sausage and peppers that get spooned over top.

Here’s what you’ll need for the mascarpone and sausage polenta dish:

• Sweet Italian sausage
• Red onion
• Bell peppers
• Red wine
• Fennel
• Cornmeal
• Mascarpone
• Parmesan

For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.

How to Make Mascarpone Polenta

Here are the basic steps to how I made this creamy polenta recipe:

1. Add water and salt to a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil.
2. Add the cornmeal, whisking to break up any lumps. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring periodically.
3. Remove from heat, stir in the mascarpone and parmesan.
4. Serve immediately, topped with sautéed veggies and sausage. (I’ve given instructions on how to cook the sausage and veggies in the recipe card below).

The above is simply a quick summary of this recipe. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.

Can You Make Polenta with Cornmeal?

Yes, that’s what I did! Any medium- to coarse-ground cornmeal will work in this cheesy polenta recipe. Or, you can use a cornmeal that’s actually labeled as polenta.

Where Is Polenta in the Grocery Store?

It’s typically located in the baking aisle, next to the flour, cornmeals, and cornbread mixes. Stores also sell pre-made polenta in a tube, which you can slice and cook in a skillet. That’s NOT what you want for this recipe.

How to Reheat Polenta

I recommend reheating the mascarpone polenta in a saucepan over medium heat. You’ll likely need to add a splash of water to thin it out (it thickens considerably in the fridge).

What to Serve with Polenta

Serve this creamy sausage polenta with one of the following side dishes:

• Italian Mixed Greens Salad
• Zucchini Tomato Basil Salad
• Rosemary Garlic Bread
• Balsamic Roasted Carrots
• Lemon Roasted Broccolini

Don’t see what you’re looking for here? You can always head over to check out the recipe index to look for more recipes.

More Easy Italian Dinner Recipes:

One Skillet Baked Ziti with Meat Sauce is the perfect, easy comforting pasta dish. Baking it in a single skillet makes for quick preparation and very minimal clean up. 

This Italian Chicken, Mushroom, and Zucchini Skillet is a super easy dinner recipe for busy school nights.

These Chicken Lasagna Roll Ups are stuffed with chicken, artichoke hearts, and sautéed mushrooms. The rolls are then smothered in a roasted garlic creamy white sauce.

This recipe for Shrimp Scampi with Tomatoes is an easy, yet romantic, pasta dinner!

Add your favorite toppings to garlic focaccia bread, and you have the best pizza I’ve tasted with this recipe for Pizza Caprese with Garlic Focaccia Crust!

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Mascarpone Polenta with Sausage and Peppers

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Rich with flavor, filling on the tummy, husband approved, and definitely blog-worthy. Here is how I imagined a bowl of creamy Italian Polenta on a late Sunday afternoon.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 lb. Sweet Italian Sausage
• 1 red onion, halved and sliced thin
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1/4 teaspoon fennel
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Mascarpone Polenta

• 4 2/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup mascarpone
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan

Instructions

For the Sausage and Peppers:

1. In a skillet or saute pan, cook the sausage over medium heat until crispy and browned on all sides. Remove, slice into half-inch thick rounds and return to pan until cooked through. Remove and set aside.
2. Over medium-high heat, saute the onion (adding olive oil if necessary) in the same pan the sausage cooked in. When tender and fragrant, about 5 minutes, add the garlic and saute a minute more.
3. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Simmer until the wine has reduced by half. Add the peppers, fennel, salt, and pepper, cooking about 3 minutes more until the peppers are tender but still brightly colored. Serve atop a bed of mascarpone polenta.

For the Polenta:

1. Add the water and salt to a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil and add the cornmeal, whisking to break up any lumps. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring periodically. Remove from heat, stir in the mascarpone and parmesan. Serve immediately.

Notes

A goodLife{eats} creation

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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 578Total Fat: 37gSaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 1568mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 25g

GoodLifeEats.com offers recipe nutritional information as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although GoodLifeEats.com makes every effort to provide accurate information, these figures are only estimates.

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