While the majority of my formidable teenage years were raised north of the Mason Dixon line, it's amazing how something so southern has become something so near and dear to my heart.
Could it have been genetically passed to me from the paternal side? From the father who claims to be a southerner even though born & raised in Brooklyn but southern via his maternal ancestors hailing from Virginia? Could it have been from the fact that this food is a blank canvas and actually has many culinary uses? Or was it from watching the TV show "Alice", where the feisty, red headed, smart mouthed waitress, Flo would yell at her boss in a stero-typical drawl,. wheeellll kess mah greets! (interpretation: kiss my grits for my Yankee friends) This catch phrase was as much part of the mid to late 70''s as Ayeeeeee (the Fonz), Up your nose with a rubber hose (Welcome back Kotter) and the always lovable Robin Williams with his "na-nu na-nu" however, I did not know what a grit was! Hearing the inflection in Flo's voice I knew it must not be something good!
For the longest time I don't think I knew that grits was a food. I didn't know if it was a singular or a plural. How did you eat them and with what did you serve with them? Growing up in states like New York, Pennsylvania and Illinois I was familiar with things like cream of wheat ,oatmeal and the worst of the worst farina. All hot cereals, these grains were inexpensive, quick, easy and fed a family a hearty hot breakfast on a cold winter's morning. My parents tried to explain that you ate these cereals with a dash of salt and some butter. A splash of milk or cream if you were eating oatmeal, but never ever did you put sugar on these. Grits are ground corn, and cream of wheat is ground wheat, oatmeal is... well you get it. Depending on where you lived, determined which of these were familiar to you.
When I got older and moved to the south, grits were part of every southern breakfast, be it at a friend's house ,at a restaurant or even on a buffet. I once decided I would be adventurous and order these at a restaurant with my breakfast. When they arrived,I thought they looked familiar to something I might have eaten as a child,but I wasn't sure. I stuck in my spoon and took a timid taste and realized while I didn't like the texture they were basically flavorless. I added a dash of salt. Nothing changed. I decided to eat them they way I ate cream of wheat, with lots of butter and sugar. They were edible but I still didn't understand grits.
Several years pass and I was at my bff Boo's house and she served grits for breakfast. I didn't want to be rude, so after moving them around the bowl for as long as I could without actually eating any, I took a tiny bite. To my amazement, they were not like any grit I had tasted before. The texture was different, they were smooth, silky but most of all not grainy. Of course they still needed sugar but this was something different and so unlike any grit I had ever had before. Something I might eat on a semi-regular basis if the ones I made would turn out like this. If I only knew the secret.Was it a brand of grits? Some secret ingredient she added? A different cooking preparation? None of the above! Boo shared her recipe with me. While I thought this a simple little substitution it was amazing the transformation of the grit!
Now to know me is to love me, and those who know, know that when I get an idea or something in my mind, I go all out, full force and learn all I can about this moment's obsession. I had to make grits! I had to figure out how to make them like Boo did and I had to do it now! I practiced, I tweaked, I threw out several batches until I perfected my recipe. I love to eat Yankee grits as my mother in law Virginia calls them(buttered and sugared),and I don't know that I will ever truly enjoy plain grits w/ salt, but considering my original thoughts on the food, I've come a long way baby!.
I perfected a "sugared" grit recipe that I make on cold winter mornings or evenings when we have breakfast for dinner. I however have to make 2 batches. My husband happens to only eat 'yankee grits' and Dalton eats them the traditional southern way, salt and butter.
Oh, my secret? Well not MY secret, but the one that I borrowed and now use as the basis for any grit recipe that I try? That secret? I substitute half milk for the water in the recipe. That simple. If the recipe uses 4 cups of water, I use 2 cups milk and 2 cups water. I also have found like a great risotto, stiring the grits often is the trick to the wonderfully creamy texture.
So, then I thought, there has to be more to grits then breakfast. I had heard of shrimp & grits, but I knew that there was no way in this world I would eat the gelatin like plain flavorless grits I was introduced to. I took my breakfast grit recipe, took out the sugar, added a few ingredients, tweaked the seasoning a few times and came up with a creamy, cheddary side dish with a subtle hint of garlic. Terrell who doesn't eat grits any way other then with butter and sugar tried these one night to appease me, and ended up eating a whole bowl.
Every once in awhile I will try to push the boundaries and come up with inventive ideas. Just to "test" my cooking skills I will take a recipe, remove a crucial ingredient and then figure out how to make it with substitutions and still come out with a delicious meal. I decided that I wanted to make breaded chicken cutlets but could not use breadcrumbs, flour or any type of coating. I pondered and thought and then decided to throw some grits in the food processor, add some seasoning and voila! I created something better then I imagined it would come out.
Don't be afraid to try new things in the kitchen. If you "hate" something with a passion and haven't tried it in awhile, do so. Maybe prepared a different way, google new recipes and mix and match until you get something you think will work. Here's the recipe for my "fish grits". I serve these for dinner with fish or seafood an either a salad or broccoli. You can also omit the garlic and serve for breakfast with eggs and biscuits
1 1/2 cups milk (I use no fat or 1%)
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cups quick grits
1 cup shredded cheddar or colby cheese
salt & pepper to taste
1/2-1 tsp garlic power
heat the milk, water and seasonings in a pot over medium- high heat. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat. Slowly sprinke in the grits (remember if you dump it, you lump it) whisking constantly
continue to stir until the grits begin to thicken and bubble slightly
reduce the heat to low and add the cheese
stir often until thick but not gloopy.
Add a bit more water or milk to loosen the grits if they thicken to much.
Enjoy!
If you have extra, try this for a breakfast treat the next day. Lightly grease /spray a 8x8 casserole dish. (or line with plastic wrap). Pour in the grits and refridgerate over night. The next morning, cut into squares or wedges. Lightly dredge in flour, dip in egg wash and back into the flour again. Put into a non-stick pan that has been heated to medium/medium high and melted a pat of butter. Turn the grit cake and brown on both sides. Cook quickily, as when these get too hot, the cheesy grits oooze out. Serve as a breakfast side and enjoy.
*** caution**** hot grits are molten and will cause a horrible burn. If you do spill grits on yourself, immediatley put under cold running water. The cold with disolve the starches in the grits, helping them to not stick to you.
Cold water also unsticks the grits from the cooking pot and makes it easier to clean.
