We served ours with grilled chicken in Show #102 but it goes great as a side dish with other entrees.

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups chicken or veal stock

1-1/2 cups heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon french sea salt

dash of Clancy's Fancy Hot Sauce

5 tablespoons organic cornmeal ground fine

5 tablespoons organic semolina

1/4 cup chopped fresh mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated antigo parmesan cheese

small piece of parmesan or other dry grating cheese

roasted garlic puree, optional

white truffle oil, optional

Method:

Porridge is ratio of dry to wet ingredients rather than a recipe. For firm porridge, it's one to three. For soft porridge, the ratio of dry to wet is one to five or six.

Combine the stock and cream in a heavy saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the cornmeal and semolina and cook over very low heat, whisking regularly, until the grains are soft, about 8 minutes. Whisk in the cheeses. Serve immediately or reserve.

To encourage the porridge to come cleanly out of the pan, cook over medium heat. Run a spatula or wooden spoon around the sides of the pan to clean off the porridge. Do not stir, but wait and watch for a few seconds until a large bubble begins to form and pushes the porridge upward. Pour immediately into a warm dish.

The porridge can be made ahead and reheated: add 1/4 to 1/2 cup water or stock, cover the dish, and reheat in the microwave or over low heat. Whisk well before serving. Grate a dusting of parmesan over the top just before serving.

Chef's Eric's note: You can add 2 tablespoons of garlic oil to the cooking liquid to add a subtle garlic flavor to the porridge.

Variation for Firm Porridge:

Proceed as directed, but increase the amounts of cornmeal and semolina each to 1/2 cup, giving a total of 1 cup dry to 3 cups liquid, a ratio of one to three. It should not take longer to cook. Serve immediately or pour onto a oiled or parchment-lined baking sheet and spread into an even 1/2-inch-thick layer. Let cool. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Cut into thick fingers or triangles and reheat or freeze. To reheat, sprinkle lightly with freshly grated Antigo Parmesan cheese and place in a preheated 500°F oven until lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Or fry in butter or olive oil.

Variation for "Pumpkin" Porridge:

Proceed as directed for soft porridge, adding 1 cup Roasted pumpkin at the end of cooking and before the cheese. Omit the Mozzarella and increase the Parmesan to 1/2 cup. If you want to go to culinary heaven, serve the pumpkin porridge on its own as an appetizer or supper dish drizzled with white truffle oil.

Variation for "Fresh Corn" Porridge

Just as we demonstrated in Show #102 you can add 1/2 cup of fresh corn niblits to the porridge for that great "just picked" sweetness. Just whisk the corn in with the cheeses and serve immediately.