Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Creamy Dreamy Grits

I go Flying Biscuit Cafe (from the ATL but lucky to have a location in Gainesville, FL) all of the time for breakfast and found myself craving their Creamy Dreamy Grits. I could tell they were choc full of unnecessary calories and goodness. I HAD to have the recipe. A quick Google search afforded me just what I was searching for and off I went. If you love creamy, cheesy grits please try these. The best part is that they don't take long at all to make and they can be paired with sweet, savory dishes including breakfast, or dinner. I made shrimp and grits last night and YUM. Sorry there is no pic, I ate it before I could think to grab the camera.

Ingredients:

  • 6 cups water
  • 2 cups half-and-half
  • 3 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
  • 2 cups quick grits
  • 1 cup grated white cheddar cheese
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

Instructions:

In a saucepan, combine water, half-and-half, salt and white pepper and bring to a boil. Slowly pour grits into boiling water while whisking the entire time. (Watch out for splattering; mixture is very hot.) Reduce to low heat and continue to whisk often, until thick and completely smooth, about 10 minutes.

Add cheese and stir gently until cheese melts. Whisk again to combine. Turn heat off and allow grits to rest 5 minutes. Add butter and stir until completely smooth, silky and shiny.

Best $35 I've ever spent!



These really are the coolest kitchen gadget and cooking surfaces I have ever bought. Thanks to a generous Visa gift card from my class I was able to splurge on two things I have been desperate to purchase. I was expecting to pay a lot more than I did but soon discovered that if you just take the time to look around, you will inevitably find the same thing for far less than you imagined forking out.
The first thing I was looking for was a grill pan. I currently live in a shoebox with no yard so I needed to create the grilling experience indoors. They do it on Food Network all of the time so why can't I. I headed to Target and discovered the Nordic 2 Burner Reversible Griddle Pan. It is a griddle on one side and a grill pan on the other! All you have to do is place it over two burners and go to town. The best part is that it was right around $25! Many smaller ones were a minimum of $35 and didn't offer the versatility of the griddle and the grill pan. Run out and get one NOW :).

The second thing I was intrigued by was a garlic chopper. I use fresh garlic nearly every single day and hate to chop it myself. I have a garlic press but it is a pain to clean. Enter the Chef n Garlic Zoom. You literally fill it with garlic, roll it on the counter and in less than 10 seconds you have chopped garlic. Seriously, where has this been all of my life? In the store it was hard to justify $10 for a garlic chopper but once you've used it, you'll agree that it is more than worth it.