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Today, I am sharing two Carthage Mills corn recipes, using corn ground at The Carthage Mill in Carthage, Indiana.
I recently learned of Carthage Mill through their membership with Indiana Grown. You can read more about Indiana Grown in this post, but they are an initiative through the Indiana Department of Agriculture that seeks to promote and elevate all foods grown and produced in Indiana.
A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to get my hands on some of their product for a segment on Fox59 highlighting foods from Indiana.
Carthage Mills plants, grows, harvests and grinds certified organic popcorn, hulless oats, and buckwheat. Their participating farmers are: Fields of Agape, LLC, D & J Norris Farms, and PS Produce. Please visit their website in this post for retail locations and to learn more about an exciting corn product they are developing in partnership with Purdue University!
In this particular segment, I made a very simple recipe for white cheddar polenta using Carthage Mills polenta grind corn, and cheese from Schnabeltier Winery and Cheese Shop in Rochester, Indiana.
This was a great accompaniment to the pan-sauteed Maple Leaf Farms duck breasts I made, which I served with a maple bourbon cranberry sauce. All of the ingredients, even the cream I used in the polenta, were produced in Indiana making this a true Indiana Grown meal.
Polenta and grits are similar in that you use ground corn. The grind (from coarse to fine) determines the consistency. In my house I call it ALL polenta just to keep it straight with my kids. It’s a blank canvas for flavors that can run from savory to sweet.
White cheddar polenta is creamy and the perfect base for a meaty sauce, stew or sliced meat. It is simple to make and if you make it too thick, you can thin it with a bit of whole milk, cream or chicken stock. It is very forgiving. Be sure to taste it before serving to add seasoning if needed.
Total Servings 4
Creamy cheesy corn polenta made with ground corn from The Carthage Mills in Indiana.
3 minPrep (inc. refrigeration & rest time)
15 minCook Time
18 minTotal Time
Ingredients
- 6 2/3 cups canned low-salt chicken broth (or water)
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 2/3 cups polenta (coarse cornmeal)*
- 1 1/2 cups (packed) grated sharp white cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces)
- 1 16 oz bag of fresh cranberries
- 1 C apple cider
- 1/3 C pure maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1 oz of bourbon (optional)
Instructions
- Combine broth, garlic and salt in heavy large saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat.
- Gradually sprinkle in polenta, whisking constantly.
- Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until polenta is thick and creamy and begins to pull away from sides of pan, whisking often, about 25 minutes.
- Add cheese; stir until cheese melts.
- If it is too thick for you, stir in some milk or cream.
- Season with salt and pepper and serve.
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer on medium until the cranberries pop and sauce thickens, about 15 minutes.
- Remove from heat and serve or chill for later.
As a side with the duck breast, use Carthage Mills corn to make up some Cheese Grit and Chive Muffins. The recipe is from Southern Living. They are the perfect accompaniment to your soup night, and can be made with leftover grits (or polenta). We really liked them! Next time I will add more chives and possibly a bit of finely diced jalapeno for a spicy kick.
I hope you enjoyed learning more about Carthage Mills, Indiana Grown, and the member products I used today!
I want to give a BIG thank you to Fox59 stars Sherman Burdette and BJ Ardaiola who did the camera work.
