POLENTA CAKES WITH ARUGULA PESTO

2-3 servings (depending on how hungry you are), 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tube of organic cooked yellow polenta (you can cook your own polenta, but for busy people this makes it easier, I used THIS brand, you can find polenta like this at most grocery stores)

• 1 tbsp ghee

• Salt & pepper to taste

• Toasted chopped almonds for topping

• Sprouted mung beans for topping (optional, but recommended and great!)

• Fennel fronds & fresh arugula for topping

For the pesto

• 1 1/2 - 2 cups arugula

• 1/4 cup basil

• Juice of 1/2 lemon

• 1 small fennel bulb, chopped, core removed

• 1/4 cup olive oil (add more if needed for blending)

• Salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Add all the ingredients for the pesto to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.

2. Cut the polenta into 1/4 inch - 1/2 inch circles.

3. Heat the ghee in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the polenta rounds to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Allow to crisp about 6-7 minutes each side (or until browned on one side then flip).

4. Toast the chopped almonds by adding them to a small frying pan over medium heat. Heat until browned and aromatic, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.

5. Assemble - add the polenta cakes to a plate. Top with a dollop of the pesto, toasted almonds, sprouted mung beans, and fresh arugula. Enjoy!

#vata #pitta #kapha #spring #summer

Notes

• This is a great light Spring meal or appetizer for a party.

• Polenta is a light, heating, and drying grain. It needs a fat (like the ghee when searing or olive oil in the pesto) to balance its dryness. It is great for kaphas, making it a perfect springtime grain. If you are kapha, you could just as easily make a polenta bowl with creamy polenta as the base instead of the cakes, steamed veggies, and a crunch for the topping!

• Want more protein? We have some options - the sprouted mung beans are there for a reason, they add a crunch and protein. You can steam them or add them raw right on top. Other options would be chicken, white fish, seared tofu, panner, cooked mung beans, or a red lentil puree :) YUM. In the picture, I did a whipped ricotta (ricotta, basil, lemon zest, salt & pepper in the blender).

• Don't feel like sprouting your own mung beans? That's cool. They are easy to sprout but do take a long time which can be annoying if you don't already have some sprouted. Whole Foods and many other natural grocery stores sells already sprouted mung beans in the produce section - note, this is different than "mung bean sprouts." They should look like the picture from this sprouted mung bean recipe.