Shelli McConnell
Shelli McConnell graduated with a bachelor of science in consumer food science and a minor in journalism from Iowa State University. She began her career as a home economist in the Better Homes & Gardens test kitchen before moving into an editorial position within DotDash Meredith. She has since freelanced for 25 years and has served as an editorial project manager for many books and magazines, including three editions of the Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book. She has also developed thousands of recipes for publications including Forks Over Knives magazine; Eat This, Not That!; Diabetic Living; Better Homes & Gardens; The Magnolia Journal; and more. McConnell loves to entertain and inspire, so when she’s not in her office, she’s usually in her kitchen. Find her on LinkedIn.
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Comments (24)
Absolutely delicious!
I substituted green onions for the cilantro in the polenta and it worked out really well!
Yummy! This was a wonderful recipe. I did make some changes to the spice content after reading the reviews. I added 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/4 teaspoon of smoked paprika and 1/2 teaspoon of Himalayan Pink salt to the polenta along with the chili powder. Also I added a good size zucchini with big chunks of garlic which I pan seared on the stove top with lime juice and bit of salt while the peppers and onions were roasting in the oven. Also I raised my oven temp to 425 degrees to make sure the peppers and onions were nicely roasted. One last thing I did was I added the extra 1/2 can of black beans to the zucchini mix and brought the beans up to temperature so it wasn’t wasted and then mixed in the chopped lime roasted peppers and onions and cilantro and it was delicious. One more tip; I made the polenta the day before and let it set up nicely.
I ended up with so much polenta/bean that I could feed my neighborhood. Can you freeze squares of the polenta/bean cakes?
I loved this recipe and it was tasty with a few additions. Also added stock powder snd cumin to the polenta for more flavour. I added sweet corn chopped avocado and shredded baby spinach to the salsa to boost the veggie component and to add healthy fats. I will definitely make this again.
I too sometimes find the recipes on here a bit bland so I took the advice of others and cooked the polenta in vegetable broth and added a tsp of cumin. I loved it! I thought it was flavorful with a nice creamy texture. I will be making it again!
Dear Forks Over Knives,
Thank you for this free recipe. It sounds great just as it is. How nice that creative people can use it as a base to build upon. I’m sure they appreciate it.
Lovely, thoughtful response. Thank you.
Why are so many Forks Over Knives recipes so bland? I always have to make the recipe as written and then figure out what it needs to taste like something. Made it tonight and first thing I will do next time is not waste two hours waiting for the polenta to gel–I will use the tube of polenta and just add beans to the veggie mix. Also I will add some Mexican spice blend to the veggies and more salt to the polenta.
I’ve noticed the same regarding the spice level. Good suggestions for my first time on this recipe.
I cooked the polenta in vegetable broth for more flavor and added some cumin. It was excellent!
Why do you create recipes using ½ can of beans….what do you do with the other ½ can except take up space in refrigerator?
I’ll make this bc it reads interestingly, but jeez-o-Pete, wasting 1/2 can of beans???
I bought two 15 oz cans of black beans, rinsed them, and used the entire two cans, which is a bit more than what was recommended. I used vegetable brother and will know soon if I should have added cumin. I did not see that recommendations. It looks like it makes a ton of polenta cakes.
I tasted the polenta while it was cooking and now want to make it for breakfast. It was delicious.
I freeze left over beans, just run them under hot water in a strainer to thaw.
I actually just cook all my beans from dried and sheet freeze. You can thaw as much as you need!
Make a double batch or just use the whole can!
I would do a bean hummus with the 1/2 can of beans.
Why don’t you list the nutritional information for the recipes?
Can I use cornmeal in place of the dry polenta?
Cornmeal and polenta are the same. The only difference may be that cornmeal is a finer texture, but you should be able to find a slightly coarser meal. If not, it still makes a cooked polenta which is virtually the same texture and density. The option is to buy a large tube of pre-cooked polenta and mix in the beans and seasoning
I was wondering the same thing..
Or maybe white grits .
In step 4, can you reheat in oven or microwave if you don’t have non stick pan?
Save the liquid to make chocolate aquafaba
I use tube polenta grilled in my panini press. Then top with bean mixture.
Delicious! Love these lime roasted veggies.