Oh My Polenta Fritters!

Let me just tell you off the bat, being modest and completely honest, these are AMAZEBALLS!

I was looking for a recipe to use a whole lot of leftover polenta.  All the recipes I found were talking about making polenta sticks and baking and blah, blah, blah; i had bigger and better ideas!

Polenta is basically Italian style grits.  I had made a pot of quick cook polenta the night before and had it with a steak and salad and it was delicious.  Then I made these fritters with the leftovers and they made last nights dinner look like small potatoes.  If you don't have it leftover just make a batch of polenta and let it cool completely.

Ingredients

Approximately 2 cups of polenta

1/2 of an egg-scrambled

1/4 cup Italian Breadcrumbs

1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese

Fresh Basil-chopped

Mozzarella Cheese (I used the block of Polly-O)-Cut into small pieces about the size of a penny

Vegetable Oil (for frying)

Flour (for dusting)

How you do it:

1. Combine the polenta with the egg, breadcrumbs, basil and parmesan cheese.  You may have to use your judgement here, not to wet, not too dry.  (My mom says that 'not too wet, not too dry' line to me about meatballs and it totally drives me crazy, but ends up... Mom's right)

2.  Form polenta mixture into patties about the size of a slider, or the palm of your hand.  Once it is formed, press your thumb into the middle of the patty to make a well. Put your piece of cheese in there and fold the edges up around the cheese until the cheese is completely hidden.  You should now have a patty with cheese in the middle.  Dust the patties in a little bit of flour and dust off an excess.

3.  Fry those babies up! Seriously.  You are going to pour about a 1/2inch of oil into a frying pan.  Heat oil to medium heat and put a few in the pan at a time.  Don't overcrowd the pan and be patient!  Just as with anything you fry, when the item releases from the bottom of the pan that means it is ready to be flipped.  If you try to flip and it is still stuck to the bottom of the pan that means it isn't ready and it needs more time.  

4.  After they are fried, put them on a paper towel to drain the oil and serve hot! 

5.  Accept all the love and appreciation you will be receiving for making such a delicious treat!