You can make them ahead of time, bring them out to get to room temperature or give ‘em a quick (really quick) hit of microwave juice to warm them up. And watch as they disappear before your eyes.

Either you like polenta or you don’t. But in my humble opinion, when polenta is seasoned and cooked correctly, there is nothing better. Sometimes, polenta-loving people object when it is in its creamy form, but that wouldn’t be a problem here. It’s crispy on the outside and perfectly delectable on the inside. It’s total comfort food in my book. See if you don’t agree.

Cuisinart Easy Grip 9-Inch Square Baking Pan

What you’ll need:
- 4.5 ounces of instant polenta
- 1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon dried minced onion
- 1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- Salt to taste
- Fresh ground pepper to taste
- Sour cream
- Fresh chives

What to do:
1. Put some what in a large heavy saucepan, add the tomatoes, salt, onion and garlic and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat to a gentle boil; add the instant polenta and cook according to the package directions.
Polenta should start to thickened and pull away cleanly from the sides of the pan.

3. Stir in the Parmesan cheese, oregano and pepper. Spread into a 9-in. square oven-proof baking pan coated with cooking spray.

4. Cool for 5 minutes and then put the baking pan in the fridge for about 20 minutes, so the polenta hardens a little.

5. Use a knife or a spatula to cut the polenta in squares (size depends on how many squares you make. I like to make them into 9 squares, but smaller works too.) and put the pan under the broiler for a few minutes, until the surface is golden and slightly crispy.

6. Serve it up either warm or at room temperature, garnish with a dab of sour cream sprinkled with some chopped chives. Beautiful!

Some notes: For crispy-all-over polenta squares, try cutting the polenta into squares after it firms up in the refrigerator and placing the squares on a cookie sheet. Then, broil on one side until crispy and flip over the squares and broil on the other side. This is not necessary, only if you prefer a crispier texture all over. Don’t over cook!

This Polenta Squares with Sun Dried Tomatoes recipe can lend itself to a lot of variations. Using non-instant polenta would improve the taste (but not the ease of prep obviously), however, I’ve had great results with the instant variety. Try making it in a round pan and cutting it like pizza slices. And feel free to substitute ingredients: any vegetable and herb, different cheeses, small bits of smoked ham, olives… it’s only limited by your imagination. Enjoy!

Print out the recipe for Polenta Squares with Sun Dried Tomatoes here.

* Photo courtesy of Taste of Home website. Thanks!

For more great ideas for easy appetizers, please visit my official website, Easy Appetizer Recipes.

I like finding what I have in my refrigerator and turning it into an elegant small bite that not only looks like I spent a lot of time on it, but it tastes good too.

I had some prosciutto left over from another recipe that I made and decided to see what I could do with it. Rummaging around, I also got out a jar of sun-dried tomatoes that looked lonely and decided to try my hand at creating a yummy treat.

It worked. Nothing was left over. Be creative – almost anything tastes good on little toasted pieces of bread.

What you’ll need:
- 1 loaf of French baguette
- 8.5 ounce jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 24 slices of prosciutto
- 8 ounces Fontina cheese, sliced
- 24 basil leaves (Genovese – if you can find them)

What to do:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Drain the sun-dried tomatoes reserving the flavored oil.
   
3. Slice the baguette into ½ inch thick slices. Arrange 24 slices of the bread on a baking sheet. Lightly brush the top side of each slice with the oil from the tomatoes. Spread a very small amount of the minced garlic on each slice.
4. Bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes, until bread is lightly toasted. Don’t let the bread get too toasted – it’ll end up being too crunchy if you do.
5. Remove from the oven.
6. While the bread is still warm, top with a slice of prosciutto, a slice of Fontina, and a sun-dried tomato. Drizzle a small amount of the tomato oil over the meat and cheese, and top with a basil leaf.

Crostini can be served immediately while warm, but even if you don’t serve them right away, they are wonderfully delicious at room temperature, too.

You can substitute the Fontina cheese for other cheeses, just use what you have and you’ll come up with some delightful ways to surprise your friends and family.