Polenta Slice with Burnt Pineapple, Pancetta and Blue Sauce

Photo courtesy of Photography by Sadiq

Polenta is traditionally an Italian dish but I've tweaked around with the flavours a little. The sweetness and the caramelising of pineapple bounces nicely with salty pancetta and creamy blue sauce over a set polenta. A fun alternative for a dinner main.

Polenta:
250g coarse polenta
675ml water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
25g butter
50g grated parmesan

1 pineapple
24 slices of pancetta
2 red chillies, diced
1 small bunch torn coriander leaves

Blue Sauce:
200g gorgonzola
75ml double cream
100ml buttermilk
1 teaspoon dijon mustard

METHOD:
Start by making the polenta, place water in a large heavy-based pot and put over high heat and bring to the boil. Add the polenta and salt, turn down the heat to medium and stir with a wooden spoon. After about 4-5 minutes the polenta will thicken and will resemble mashed potatoes. Remove from heat then stir in butter and parmesan until well incorporated. Line a 30x20cm (3cm high) tray with parchment paper and pour in the polenta and evenly smooth out. Leave the polenta to cool for about 2 hours before cutting.
To make the cheese sauce place the gorgonzola and cream in a saucepan, put over a medium heat, stir the sauce until the cheese is almost melted. Remove sauce from heat and pour in a food processor with buttermilk and dijon, blend together until smooth.
Lay pancetta on a baking tray and cook at 180ºC for 4 to 5 minutes. Top and tail the pineapple then slice off the skin by sliding a sharp knife round the edges. Slice the pineapple into quarters lengthways then remove the core. Cut each quarter into 1cm thick slices lengthwise place a fry pan over high heat. Once the frying pan is hot and smoking a little grill each slice of pineapple on both sides until it starts to brown and go a little black.
To construct slice the polenta into 8 pieces and lay on a serving platter or individual plates. Layer each polenta slice with 2 slices of pineapple, a good spoonful of blue sauce, 3 pieces of pancetta and finally garnish with a sprinkling of chillies and coriander.