Italian Polenta Tart | GF

This Italian polenta tart is a well-balanced, gluten free vegan meal. The soft crust is topped with a sun-dried tomato pesto, and roasted vegetables.
How to make a polenta tart
Like any other tarts, polenta tarts are easily adaptable to your own taste and diet.
Polenta is made of cornmeal cooked in boiling water and salt. You can follow my recipe or make it the way you’re use to.
It’s better to use a pie ring, as it makes it easy to unmold. If you make the tart in a dish, it might be preferable to use a square or a rectangular one, that is not too deep.
You can replace the sun-dried tomato pesto with a regular pesto, tomato sauce, or garlic sauce for example. Here is a link to my vegan sun-dried tomato pesto, it is fast and easy to make as long as you have a strong stand blender.
For the roasted vegetables, I used red onion, bell pepper, and zucchini, but you can use a wide variety of them : asparagus, eggplant, mushrooms, black olives, etc…
I added some fresh basil leaves right before serving, arugula would be a nice substitute for it.
If you end up with leftovers, store the tart in an airtight container in the fridge, and warm it up in the preheated oven, at 325°F – 170°C, for 15 minutes.

More vegan and gluten free main courses
Millet Bowl with Butternut Squash and Dried Cranberries
Mushroom Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
Stuffed Baked Potatoes with Mushrooms and Nuts

Italian Polenta Tart | GF, Vegan
Equipment
- Ø 8.5 inch – 22 cm pie ring
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp sun-dried tomato pesto – find the link for my pesto recipe in the post above or in the notes below
- 1 cup cornmeal (185 g)
- 3 cups water (750 ml)
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 zucchini
- 1 bell pepper
- ¼ red onion
- fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F – 170°C, and place the pie ring on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray the inside and the bottom with oil.
- Prepare the polenta : Boil the water with the salt. Pour in the cornmeal while stirring, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon. When the cornmeal is cooked, mix in one teaspoon of olive oil, and pour in the ring. Spread evenly, and allow to cool down.
- Roast the vegetables : Cut the onion, zucchini and pepper in slices.In a frying pan, heat up a teaspoon of olive oil on medium heat. Saute the onions for a few minutes, add the pepper and keep cooking for a couple more minutes. Lastly, add the zucchini and cook for another 5 minutes, until roasted.
- Spread the pesto on the polenta crust, and the roasted vegetables onto it.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 325°F – 170°C.
- Garnish with some fresh basil leaves and enjoy!
Notes
It’s better to use a pie ring, as it makes it easy to unmold. If you make the tart in a dish, it might be preferable to use a square or a rectangular one, that is not too deep.
My sun-dried tomato pesto recipe is vegan. You can replace it with a regular pesto, a tomato sauce, or a garlic sauce for example.
You can use other vegetables such as asparagus, eggplant, mushrooms, black olives, etc…
Arugula would be a nice substitute for basil.
If you end up with leftovers, store the tart in an airtight container in the fridge, and warm it up in the preheated oven, at 325°F – 170°C, for 15 minutes.
Calories are per one serving (total calories for the whole tart = 700).