Makes about ~60 small bites

INGREDIENTS:

1.5l water

250g of instant polenta

Salt

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

60g butter

2 tbsp Marsala wine or sherry

340g shiitake mushrooms, sliced into small cubes, stems removed

5-6 sprigs of fresh thyme

PREPARATION:

1. Bring 5l of water to a rolling boil. Season heavily with salt.
2. Add olive oil to the boiling, salted water.
3. Add polenta to water, whisking furiously until it thickens, 2-3 minutes.
4. Once the polenta has thickened up a bit (it should be a loose porridge consistency) pour it out on a baking tray lined with If You Care Parchment paper. It should be approximately 5cm thick.
5. Smooth the top of the polenta so it’s even all the way around the baking tray.
6. Leave to cool on the side or in the fridge for an hour, or until it sets.
7. While the polenta cools, prepare your mushrooms.
8. In a large sauté pan, melt butter.
9. Add mushrooms and cook on a medium high heat, stirring often, for 15 minutes.
10. When the mushrooms have browned nicely, deglaze the pan with Marsala or sherry.
11. Season generously with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
12. Add the thyme leaves to the mushrooms, discarding the stems.
13. Stir one final time and remove from the heat.
14. Use a small circular cap, cookie cutter, ravioli cutter or glass to cut out your polenta bites. We used a flute glass turned upside down! You could also cut the polenta into squares using a knife if you preferred that shape.
15. Top each polenta bite with a teaspoon of the mushroom mixture.
16. Enjoy!

*If your polenta is cold after chilling, you may want to gently warm it in the oven or bring it to room temperature before topping with mushrooms and serving.