This week, in celebration of the upcoming, very long-awaited, premier of the 4th season of Arrested Development (my most favorite TV show of all time) on Netflix, I am doing a week of Arrested Development-themed recipes. It's sort of a week-long Arrested Development premier celebration, if you will ("Oh, sure, I will. Look, I have..."). To answer your questions: Yes, I am a huge Arrested Development fan and yes, I am also kind of a dork.
“Michael was making cornballs, a Bluth family favorite since George Sr. unsuccessfully tried to market it in the mid-seventies.”
George Bluth Sr. once invented a faulty deep-frying contraption for making “cornballs” which easily burns whoever goes near it. I can only guess as to what cornballs actually are since I’ve never had one. I can however, create my own interpretation of the cornball.
“Hey, the Cornballer. Thought these things were only legal in Mexico.”
My version is made of cooked polenta and corn rolled into balls. I chose to not deep-fry them for health purposes. Instead, I baked them and they were absolutely wonderful.
“In fact, the Cornballer wasn't legal anywhere, but George Sr. continued to market it in Mexico, anyways.”
I served the cornballs with some very quickly-made spicy marinara sauce. The final product was so delicious! If these are anything like the Bluth's version, I can see why they love them so much! Chris and I ate half the batch while re-watching the old Arrested Development episodes, preparing for the new season. Not that we needed to watch them- we’ve only seen every episode about a hundred times. I must say, though, the old episodes were even more enjoyable while eating these cornballs with brownie ice cream sandwiches for dessert.
“Muy delisioso. Es verdad. Soy loco por los Corn Balls!”
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup ground polenta
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup frozen corn kernals, defrosted
- 1 15oz can of organic fire-roasted tomatoes
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Line a 9x13 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Bring the water to boil in a medium pot. Once it is boiling, add the salt. Slowly add the polenta, stirring constantly. Lower the heat to a simmer and continue to stir constantly until very thick, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in the spices and the corn. Remove from heat. Pour into the prepared baking dish, cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours up to overnight.
- Once the polenta mixture is firm, remove from the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 400.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Use an ice cream scoop or a large spoon to scoop out the polenta mixture and use your hands to roll it into 1-2 inch balls. Place on the baking sheet.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until firm and slightly golden. Remove from oven. Serve immediately with spicy marinara sauce. Enjoy!
- Combine all ingredients in a small pot. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once heated, use an immersion blender to pulse the sauce until just slightly chunky. Remove from heat and serve hot or chill until ready to use and serve cold.
Are you looking forward to season 4 of Arrested Development? Who is your favorite character?
Photography by Chris Miller
Stephanie
You've done it again...these look amazing! And I can't wait till Arrested Development starts!! 🙂
keepinitkind
Thank you! And meeee toooo! 🙂
Cami
😉 You should have named this "Cornballs with Spicy Club Sauce." (Yes, I'm totally late to the party.
keepinitkind
I hate myself for not coming up with that myself. 😉
Maria Tadic
These look really yummy! I love polenta and the sweetness of corn. I betcha these are awesome with that spicy tomato sauce!
keepinitkind
The spicy tomato sauce was Chris's favorite part. It was a perfect pairing. 🙂
Caitlin
WOO! the corn baller! these look fabulous! making these over the weekend FOR SURE.
keepinitkind
Si! The cornballer! 😉 I ended up liking these WAY more than I expected to. I can see them becoming a regular meal in this house. 🙂
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan
I'm not a follower of AD, but I can get into these!
keepinitkind
AD or not, I think you will love these, Abby. 🙂
Portia
These look amazing! I'm going to bust them out for an AD marathon this weekend. We've also watched all the episodes hundreds of times. My family is going to be so excited for cornballs! "Everybody's laughing and riding and cornholing except for Buster. What's wrong with Buster?"
keepinitkind
That's one of my favorite quotes (It gets me EVERY time), but I chose to not use it in the off-chance that it might offend someone. 😉 Have fun at your marathon this weekend! 🙂
Richa
i dont have a clue abt arrested development phrases:) i dont watch much anything:).. but these look like a fantastic appetizer!
keepinitkind
Thanks, Richa! 🙂
Sarah
Yum! We're re-watching the old episodes in preparation this week too 🙂
michelle
these looks awesome...never got into AD but I know a lot of people are waiting in anticipation...
I'll take these tho
keepinitkind
These will be good with or without AD. 😉
Ana Fernandez
I don´t know much about Arrested Development but I´m in love with this cornballs. They would look great at every gathering!
keepinitkind
Thank you, Ana!
Annie
Much to my shame and embarrassment, I've never watched Arrested Development. Is it too late ;-)? Cornballs look totally in-the-mouth-popping good!
keepinitkind
It's never too late for AD, Annie. 😉
Kate
excited to try these! They sound great
keepinitkind
Thanks, Kate! 🙂
Lauren @ A Nerd Cooks
This. Is. Awesome. Can't wait for AD to start up again!
keepinitkind
I hope you're loving the new episodes as much as we are! So fun!
Gabby @ the veggie nook
This series of your is making me oh so happy. Seriously Kristy, I think we are kindred spirits forced to live forever away. You must let me know what you think of the premier the moment you watch it yes?
The cornballer is one of my favourite things in AD. I just love when they all burn themselves on it! Or when George is in Mexico and all the Mexicans start attacking him because they all have serious burns. The BEST 🙂 (oh wait- did that just make me sound really sick and twisted? I hope not haha)
keepinitkind
I will definitely email you once we finish (I think we're around halfway through?). We will have to have a major discussion- if only we lived closer together!
And P.S.- I love the phrase "kindred spirits." I was a huge Anne of Green Gables fan growing up! 🙂
Gabby @ the veggie nook
So was I! Die hard fan! I read all the books twice and was known to watch the movies at least every month!
keepinitkind
Meee too! I had them practically memorized! 🙂
sara
A totally awesome idea! I love Arrested Development too, may have to try these for Sunday!! 🙂
keepinitkind
Thank you, Sara! 🙂
Lindy
These look amazing..going to try them this weekend! The fork in the picture, however, looks totally acary! ha 🙂
keepinitkind
Thanks! It is a weird little fork, isn't it? I found it at a thrift store and thought it would be a fun prop. 🙂
Produce on Parade
You are too funny! I have been rewatching some of the Arrested Development episodes to prepare/pump myself up for Sunday! I am sooooo excited!
keepinitkind
Soooooo excited over here too! We just dove in last night and we're hoping to finish them up today. It feels like Christmas!
Courtney @ The Fig Tree
Woo! SO pumped for Arrested Development!!!! 🙂 Love that show.
This recipe looks awesome! Yum! Great idea.
keepinitkind
Yay! Another AD fan! Can't wait to hear how you liked it! 🙂
Bobbie {the vegan crew}
I often wondered what exactly cornballs were -- now I know, and now I think I must have some. Nice work!
Kirsten
Polenta cornballs...with club sauce.
keepinitkind
I WISH I'D THOUGHT OF THAT! Seriously- you made me almost spit out my tea!
LeeAnn
I'm in the midst of making these right now -- having a very hard time getting the balls to stick together. Any tips?
keepinitkind
Sorry- I just saw this! They will seem a little crumbly at first, and they are very sticky, but once they go in the oven, you shouldn't have a problem. I hope they worked out okay!
LeeAnn
Thanks! I'll be baking/serving them this evening, so the balls spent another night in the icebox. I tried warming up the dough a bit in the microwave before rolling the balls, and that made them stick together better. Next time I might try a finer grind of cornmeal.
keepinitkind
Good to know. I'm not sure whether my polenta is fine-grain or not. Truth be told, I bought it a long time ago and this is my first time using it. It looks the same as the last polenta I used and I don't recall another variety so I truly don't know whether mine is fine-grain or not. That's just my ignorance, though. 😉 Glad to hear to they worked out. 🙂
Heather
I have to pick just one favorite character- they are all amazing! I am loving this week of themed food, awesome!!! Mys sister and I are watching this weekend 🙂
keepinitkind
Have fun watching this weekend! Chris and I have 2 more episodes left. We should have a vegan AD-lover forum so you, Gabby, Caitlin, Melissa and I can all discuss! 🙂
jon
Yes! Surfing the net for a polenta recipe and I got an amazing Arrested Development scene. That made my day, still laughing. Thank You Mam!
Joe
Awesome recipe! Just wanted to let you know I gave you a feature in our super bowl recipe article here =): https://cheapveganshop.com/in-the-kitchen/cheap-vegan-super-bowl-snacks/
Max
Im new to cooking and don’t understand what ground polenta is...is it dry cornmeal? Not sure how it is supposed to be “ground”?
keepinitkind
You can purchase a bag of dry "ground" polenta, or a roll of already cooked polenta. This recipe calls for the dry, ground type.