POLENTA WITH BEANS

It's getting colder outside now so one evening recently I decided to turn to the comfort food that is the "gold" of Northern Italy, polenta.  This is another recipe which I've adapted from the Conad chain's November Bene Insieme magazine. The recipe uses dried beans but, as I don't care for them, I used fresh, green ones:

First blanch or microwave 200 gr fresh, green beans, cut into pieces, until just tender.  Set aside while you cook around 100 gr chopped lardo [Italian white bacon] a chopped onion, 2 chopped cloves of garlic and a handful of chopped parsley in 2 tablesp olive oil.  When the onion becomes transparent, add a can of chopped tomatoes and the beans and mix everything well. Remove from the heat.  Bring 1.5 litres salted water to the boil and add 500 gr instant polenta in a constant stream. Immediately start mixing like mad for the amount of time indicated on the packet. Then add about 200 gr grated parmesan and continue to mix off the heat.  Add the bean mixture too, then tip the lot into an oiled dish.  Leave for a few minutes before cutting into slices to serve. You can also serve this cold.

Buon appetito.