Are you looking for the ultimate cozy and comforting meal that is a true celebration of all the best flavors of the fall season? A dish that is elegant enough for a special occasion, but easy enough for a weeknight? This incredible, from-scratch Creamy Pumpkin Polenta, topped with sweet, caramelized roasted butternut squash and Brussels sprouts, is that perfect meal.
This isn’t just another fall recipe; it’s a guide to a sophisticated, restaurant-quality vegetarian dish that is surprisingly simple to make at home. We’ll show you the simple secrets to a perfectly smooth and velvety polenta, infused with the cozy flavor of pumpkin and salty Parmesan cheese. This luscious polenta is the perfect canvas for a medley of perfectly roasted fall vegetables, creating a complete and satisfying meal that is pure autumn in a bowl.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Recipe Overview: The Ultimate Cozy Fall Meal
What makes this Pumpkin Polenta so spectacularly delicious is its incredible, luxurious texture and its perfect harmony of sweet and savory fall flavors. The base of the dish is a simple, quick-cooking polenta that is transformed into a masterpiece of creaminess with the addition of pure pumpkin purée, rich butter, and salty Parmesan cheese. This is topped with a beautiful and delicious medley of butternut squash and Brussels sprouts, which are roasted at a high heat to bring out their natural sweetness and create wonderful, caramelized edges. It’s a wholesome, satisfying, and naturally gluten-free meal that is sure to become a new favorite.
| Metric | Time / Level |
| Total Time | 45 minutes |
| Active Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Difficulty Level | Easy |
| Servings | 4 |
The Essential Ingredients for This Cozy Polenta
This recipe uses a handful of fresh, seasonal ingredients and pantry staples to create its signature comforting and savory flavor.
- The Creamy Pumpkin Polenta: This is the velvety, flavorful heart of our dish.
- Quick-Cooking Polenta: This is a fantastic shortcut that allows you to create a perfectly creamy polenta in just a few minutes. Polenta is simply coarsely ground cornmeal, and the “quick-cooking” variety has been pre-processed to cook much faster than traditional, stone-ground polenta.
- Pure Pumpkin Purée: Be sure to use 100% pure pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling. This adds a beautiful, sunny orange color, a subtle, earthy sweetness, and an extra layer of creamy texture to the polenta.
- Parmesan Cheese: A generous amount of freshly grated, high-quality Parmesan cheese adds a salty, nutty, umami flavor that perfectly balances the sweetness of the pumpkin and the squash.
- Fresh Sage: Stirring in fresh, chopped sage at the end is a classic and perfect pairing with both pumpkin and butternut squash, adding a wonderful, earthy, and fragrant aroma.
- The Roasted Vegetables:
- Butternut Squash & Brussels Sprouts: This is the perfect fall vegetable combination! The butternut squash becomes wonderfully sweet, tender, and nutty when it is roasted, while the Brussels sprouts get a lovely, savory char and crispy edges.
Step-by-Step to the Perfect Pumpkin Polenta
This delicious, restaurant-quality meal comes together in just a few simple stages.
Step 1: Roast the Butternut Squash and Brussels Sprouts
Step 1: First, preheat your oven to a hot 400°F (200°C).
Step 2: On a large, rimmed baking sheet, toss the 1 pound of cubed butternut squash and the 1 pound of quartered Brussels sprouts with the 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. Season them generously with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Step 3: Spread the vegetables in a single, even layer on the baking sheet.
Step 4: Roast for about 30 minutes, tossing the vegetables about halfway through the cooking time, until they are perfectly tender and have beautiful, browned and caramelized edges.
Part 2: Cook the Creamy Polenta
Step 1: While the vegetables are roasting, you can prepare the polenta. In a large saucepan, bring 4 cups of water, the 2 cups of milk, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to a simmer over medium-high heat.
Step 2: Once the liquid is simmering, slowly and gradually whisk in the 1 cup of quick-cooking polenta.
Pro Tip: Whisking the polenta into the simmering liquid, rather than dumping it all in at once, is the secret to a perfectly smooth, lump-free polenta.
Step 3: Bring the mixture to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to low. Let the polenta cook, stirring it often with your whisk or a wooden spoon to prevent it from sticking, for about 6 minutes, until it is thick and creamy.
Part 3: Finish the Polenta and Assemble
Step 1: Whisk the 1 cup of pure pumpkin purée into your cooked polenta. Continue to cook, whisking, for about 4 more minutes, until the pumpkin is completely incorporated and the polenta is warmed all the way through.
Step 2: Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the 3/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese, the 2 tablespoons of butter, and the 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh sage. Stir until the butter and the cheese have completely melted into the polenta.
Step 3: Give the polenta a final taste and season it with any more salt and pepper if needed.
To serve, spoon the warm, creamy pumpkin polenta into shallow bowls. Top each serving with a generous pile of the hot, roasted vegetables and a few beautiful shavings of extra Parmesan cheese. Finish with a final drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil.
The Best Cozy & Creamy Pumpkin Polenta
A creamy and savory vegetarian main course featuring pumpkin polenta topped with roasted vegetables. The dish starts with Brussels sprouts and butternut squash, which are tossed in olive oil and roasted until tender and browned. While the vegetables roast, a quick-cooking polenta is prepared with milk and water, then enriched with pumpkin puree, grated Parmesan cheese, butter, and fresh sage to create a rich, flavorful base. The finished polenta is served in bowls and topped with the roasted vegetables.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered (about 4 cups)
- 1 pound cubed peeled butternut squash (about 3 cups)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup quick-cooking polenta
- 1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces), plus shaved Parmesan for topping
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the Brussels sprouts and butternut squash with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and spread in an even layer.
- Roast for about 30 minutes, tossing halfway through, until the vegetables are tender and browned.
- While the vegetables are roasting, bring 4 cups of water, the milk, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Gradually whisk in the polenta. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.
- Cook, stirring often, for about 6 minutes until the polenta is creamy.
- Whisk in the pumpkin puree and cook, whisking, for about 4 more minutes until it is warmed through.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the grated Parmesan, butter, and chopped sage. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- To serve, divide the pumpkin polenta among bowls. Top with the roasted vegetables and some shaved Parmesan. Drizzle with a little more olive oil.
Notes
- Roasting the vegetables separately before adding them to the polenta is a key step that develops a deep, caramelized flavor.
- Using quick-cooking polenta makes this a relatively fast meal to prepare.
- Stirring the polenta often as it cooks is important to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan and becoming lumpy.
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
Polenta is a fantastic dish for meal prepping, and the components can easily be made in advance.
- Make-Ahead: You can prepare both the roasted vegetables and the creamy pumpkin polenta up to 3 days in advance. Let them cool completely and store them in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator.
- Storage: Store any leftover polenta and vegetables in separate containers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Reheating Polenta: Polenta will become very thick and firm as it cools. The best way to reheat it and bring back its original creamy texture is to place it in a saucepan over a low heat with a generous splash of milk, broth, or water. Whisk vigorously as it warms up until it is hot and creamy again.
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Creative Recipe Variations
- Add a Savory Protein: For a heartier, all-in-one meal, this dish is absolutely fantastic when topped with some browned Italian sausage, some crispy, crumbled bacon or pancetta, or a few slices of roasted chicken.
- Add a Tangy Cheese: For a different but equally delicious flavor profile, you can substitute the Parmesan cheese with an equal amount of crumbled, tangy goat cheese or feta cheese.
- Make Crispy Fried Sage: For a beautiful and crunchy garnish, you can fry some whole, fresh sage leaves. Simply melt the 2 tablespoons of butter for the polenta in a small skillet first. Add the whole sage leaves and fry them until they are crispy. Remove the crispy leaves and set them aside for the garnish, and then add the now-browned and sage-infused butter to your polenta at the end.
Enjoy The Ultimate Cozy Fall Meal!
You’ve just created a truly special dish that is a perfect harmony of wholesome, seasonal ingredients and sophisticated, satisfying flavors. This Creamy Pumpkin Polenta is a testament to the power of a simple, from-scratch meal to bring comfort and joy. It’s a rewarding and deeply satisfying recipe that is sure to become a new staple in your fall cooking repertoire.
We hope you enjoy every last, creamy, and delicious bite!
If you enjoyed making this recipe, please leave a comment below or share it with a friend who loves a good, easy, and elegant meal!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1: What is the difference between polenta, cornmeal, and grits?
While they are all made from ground corn, there are some subtle differences. Polenta is traditionally made from a specific type of flint corn and has a medium to coarse grind. Cornmeal is a more general term and can have a fine, medium, or coarse grind. Grits are typically made from a different type of corn (dent corn) that has been treated in an alkaline solution (hominy) and are often more coarsely ground. For this recipe, a product labeled “polenta” or a medium-grind yellow cornmeal will work best.
Q2: How do I make my polenta perfectly creamy and not lumpy?
The number one secret is to add the dry polenta to your simmering liquid slowly and gradually, while whisking constantly. If you dump all the polenta in at once, the outside of the clumps will hydrate and form a gel, which will prevent the liquid from getting to the dry polenta in the middle, resulting in lumps. Whisking continuously as you pour is the key!
Q3: Can I make this dish ahead of time?
Yes, this is a fantastic make-ahead meal! The best method is to prepare the components separately and store them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When you are ready to eat, you can simply reheat the roasted vegetables in the oven or an air fryer, and reheat the polenta on the stovetop with a splash of milk or broth to make it creamy again.
Q4: Can I use a different kind of squash or vegetable for the topping?
Of course! This recipe is incredibly versatile. You could substitute the butternut squash with an equal amount of peeled and cubed sweet potatoes or kabocha squash. You could also swap the Brussels sprouts with other hearty vegetables that roast well, like broccoli florets or cauliflower.
Q5: Can I make this recipe vegan?
Yes, it’s very easy to make this recipe vegan! Simply substitute the milk in the polenta with a high-quality, full-fat oat milk or canned coconut milk. Use a vegan butter substitute and either omit the Parmesan cheese or use your favorite brand of shredded vegan Parmesan.Be sure to use vegetable broth if the recipe calls for it.