Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas

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Caprese polenta pizzas are hand held mini pizzas with fresh tomatoes, basil, and lots of mozzarella cheese baked onto polenta rounds. They’re great gluten free appetizers for game day!

#SundaySupper and Gallo Family Vineyards are helping you get ready for football season with food and wine for Tailgating on Your Home Turf. You can’t go wrong with either food-lovers and football-lovers when you transform a favorite appetizer salad into much-loved game day munchies and make Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas.

Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas

Disclosures: Compensation was provided by Gallo Family Vineyards via Sunday Supper, LLC. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Gallo Family Vineyards. There are affiliate links in this post, meaning that if you click and make a purchase, the cost to you is the same, but I will receive a few pennies. I use the money to help maintain this website and to bring you new recipes!

All the members of the team are there and they’ve all got their jerseys on. You’re looking at the lineup, and the game plan for the day is being discussed. Everyone is getting pumped up as the game is about to start. That can only mean one thing. It’s time to… EAT!!

Oh come on, you know tailgating isn’t all about the football. The Hubby and I have loved going to football games at my alma mater, which is just one town over from where we live. But I have to be honest, it’s too much of a gamble – it could be too hot or too cold or too windy or, worst case scenario, a total downpour.

I’m actually much happier when The Hubby wants to invite over some friends to watch the games. Sure, we still don our team colors, but our flat screen TV provides a much better view than our second tier seats, our house definitely has better climate control than an outdoor stadium, and compared to dried out pretzels and “nachos” which are really just mediocre chips and a little tub of day-glow cheese, I definitely make much better food…

Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas will please everyone at your football party.

Your friends who are just there for the company and, more importantly, the food will adore the classic Caprese salad in pizza form. They will sink their teeth into the soft but slightly crisp “crust” and stretch out the gooey mozzarella, getting the pop of the juicy tomatoes as they burst in their mouth. A little sprinkle of basil for freshness and a drizzle of syrupy balsamic vinegar ties it all together. Here’s game day grub even the finest foodie will appreciate.

Two quick notes about the caprese polenta pizzas recipe:

The first is that you really need to cook the polenta until it is very thick. When you think it is done, keep cooking it. Second, I photographed these the first time I made them, but the second time I added a little schmear of pesto, which was super yummy, so your choice. You could make them either way.

And for the rest of your guests who are focused on the game, well, it’s pizza. Not gonna disappoint anyone there.

I think Merlot and pizza is a pretty classic pairing, which is why I opened up a mini bottle of Gallo Family Vineyards Merlot to enjoy with my Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas. But really, is there a wrong wine to drink with pizza – even fancy-shmancy pizza? I think not. Just like everyone has their favorite team, everyone also has their favorite wine. So it is perfect that Gallo offers nine varietals in 187 mL bottles. You can put out an assortment for each of your tailgating guests to select their favorite.

Gallo knows all about the importance of family and the meals that bring us together, and sometimes that family is our football-watching friends and the meal is munching on all of our favorite game day snacks. Learn more about the wines of Gallo Family Vineyards, connect with them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube, and check out the store locator to try some of their wines yourself.

Mini Caprese Polenta Pizzas

Mini polenta pizzas topped with fresh mozzarella and tomatoes, like a classic Caprese salad, make a fun party appetizer.

Servings: 12 -16

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Ingredients

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock or broth or water with a good pinch of salt
• pesto optional
• 8 oz fresh mozzarella sliced
• 20-24 cherry or grape tomatoes halved
• 6-8 basil leaves cut into chiffonade or thin ribbons
• optional aged or reduced balsamic vinegar

Instructions

• Whisk the cornmeal into the stock or water in a medium saucepan, cover and bring to boil
• Remove the lid, reduce heat to medium low and stir frequently (almost constantly at first while it is bubbling a lot) for 30-45 minutes until it is very thick, almost a paste.
• While it is cooking, line baking sheets with parchment or coat well with oil.
• Make balls with 2-3 Tablespoons of cooked polenta, place on the prepared baking sheet, and flatten into circles about 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat your oven to 450°F.
• Bake polenta crusts for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, carefully flip, and bake for another 5 minutes.
• If desired, top each crust with a thin smear of pesto.
• Divide the mozzarella slices between the crusts and top with 3 or 4 tomato halves.
• Bake for another 5-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and crust reached desired crispness.
• Sprinkle with basil and drizzle with balsamic, if desired.

Author: Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips

Course: Appetizer, Snack

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Enjoy!

If you love the caprese polenta pizzas recipe, but want some more tailgating recipes, I’ve got a few for you…

• Bill’s Chili
• Balsamic Glazed Cauliflower Wings
• Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Sandwiches

And here is the rest of the #SundaySupper Tailigating on Your Home Turf Menu…