Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Pumpkin Polenta (Pumpkin Mush)

"This Pumpkin Mush, adapted from a recipe by Eliza Leslie in her 1852 cookbook, New Receipts for Cooking, is, as she says, 'an excellent and wholesome breakfast dish.' It combines pumpkin puree, yellow cornmeal, and milk and has a slight ginger flavor. Served hot, with a pat of (IBS-safe margarine) and a spoonful of brown sugar, this is good.

2 cups soy or rice milk
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1/3 cup cold water
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger

Combine the milk and pumpkin in a heavy-bottomed saucepan with a lid. Heat, stirring to blend, over medium-low heat.

Put the cornmeal in a small bowl and stir in the cold water (always wet cornmeal with cold water before adding to a hot liquid - this prevents it from getting lumpy). Stir the cornmeal mixture into the milk and pumpkin, and add the salt and ginger. Cook until thickened, stirring every minute or two to keep the mush from burning. (Like all mush, when the mass gets hot it begins to sputter and spurt, so keep the pan partially covered when cooking and remove the pan from the heat to stir to protect yourself from burns.) The mush will be done cooking in only 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and spoon into bowls. Serve hot. Makes 3 cups."

-- from The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham

This will make 3-4 servings, depending on how hungry you are. It is FILLING. For me, it made at least 4 servings. At 3 servings, and without any sugar, it's 193 calories & 3.8g fat per serving.

This is really a versatile recipe. Unsweetened as it is, it would make a really tasty side dish with chicken or turkey - add a little more salt and maybe a pinch of crushed rosemary leaves.

If you have leftover, let it cool till it's just warm and pack it firmly into a loaf pan lined with plastic wrap. Cover and refrigerate till firm and completely chilled. Turn out the loaf and cut it into 1/2" slices. Broil on a cooking-sprayed baking sheet till the slices are hot, browned, and crisp around the edges.

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