Grits are fabulous, and for those that think otherwise-this dish is for you.  This is the turn-a- round dish that will convert even the most ardent grit detester. Yes, there are a few of those around much to my dismay.

But really, how could anyone protest when eating a light fluffy moist dish-loaded with aged cheddar, cream, butter, tomatoes, green chilies, eggs and of course grits.

Grits casserole is simple and open to much interpretation. Which means add what you’d like and remove what you don’t like. Just keep the basic recipe and have at it. You will not be disappointed.

The bonus, and it is a big one-grits casserole reheats wonderfully in the microwave for up to two days. So enjoy and if you have come up with a stellar flavor combination, please share!

Cheddar Grits Casserole with Tomatoes and Green Chilies

Basic grits recipe-

1 cup stone ground white or yellow grits (if you are not fortunate enough to live in the South, you may mail order these at Anson Mills)

4 cups whole milk (no skim please-it’s so not Southern)

3 tablespoon sweet unsalted butter

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

freshly ground pepper to taste

1 lb extra sharp white aged cheddar coarsely grated

5 eggs lightly beaten

1 can tomatoes with green chilies (found in your Mexican section of any grocery store)

Put first four ingredients in a medium saucepan, whisk well to mix and bring to a boil. Turn to low heat and cook for about 25 minutes or according to directions on grits package. Stir often, making sure that the grits don’t clump at the bottom of the pan. When done set aside to cool slightly.

Meanwhile mix remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.  Add a  cup or so of the warm grits and beat to combine. Then add remaining grit mixture and mix together. Pour into a greased dish or two and bake in a preheated oven set to 375 degrees. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes till lightly browned on top and set in the center. Don’t over bake, but make sure center doesn’t jiggle.

Serve warm as a side dish or with a salad as a light meal.

What do you do when a Southern girl tells you that her favorite birthday cake isn’t the cherished Southern Coconut Cake but instead she would prefer Boston Cream Pie instead?

Well, I am all about having your favorite for your birthday so I promised to come through with a fabulous Boston Cream Pie. I am from the North, so I ought to be able to come up with a great recipe.

I must confess that I do love BCP, and have fond memories of my mom making them. They are actually a cake and since I am all about cake-especially white cake, I knew this would be fun coming up with something special.

My mom has a great recipe which I lost and I didn’t have time for a rewrite, I chose to go for broke. I tried a recipe from an unknown source at the last minute and held my breath.

Mid way through the cake I had my doubts, the same was true with the cream filling and chocolate ganache.  Any doubts that I had were quickly erased once I had a bite of this yummy dessert. The cake was absolutely fabulous and is on my all time favorite list. The ganache was creamy and oh so good.

I will add that I like lots of filling so will increase the recipe by 1/2 more next time. Save your cake scraps for your am coffee or freeze them for making another last minute trifle or banana pudding dessert.

For the recipe please click this link to visit Design Sponge and have fun, I know I did.

Sally Lunn Bread has been on my “To Bake” list for quite some time. Actually it was so simple to make that I regret putting it off for so long. The dough is soft as it is laden with butter and eggs and promises to be a treat. I almost always can tell how my yeast-leavened breads will ultimately be; by the way the dough feels.

I expect this bread to be a treat which can be eaten either hot out of the oven or at room temperature. My plans are to try the hot out of the oven version. It is a sunny yet chilly day today in Charleston. The windows are cracked open just a tad, for fresh air to enter. As I type away upstairs in my office, I can smell the bread baking below me in the kitchen.

Some strawberry jam and European butter are set aside to be slathered on top of the hot bread as soon as it emerges from the oven. While I wait in anticipation I wanted to share a brief history of Sally Lunn. No two accounts are the same and no one is in agreement as to the origin of Sally Lunn. Sally and her bread remain a mystery and will most likely never be solved. This is the version that I choose to believe.

Solange Luyon was a young Huguenot (French Protestant) refugee from France who began working at a bakery in Bath after arriving in England sometime during 1685 or shortly after. She began baking the cakes and selling them on the streets to everyone’s enjoyment. The breads or cakes as they were originally called were eventually named after her in the English version “Sally Lunn”. These brioche style buns eventually made their way to the states when settlers arrived in Virginia. They became a beloved bread in the South making their way into almost every cookbook that you can find.

There is a place in Bath were you can dine on these buns and enjoy a visit at her home. It is said that the original secret recipe is kept under lock and key at the home, and is only revealed to the owner of the property as it is passed down with the deed.

Got to run as it is time for this cook to run, as I hear the faint sound of the buzzer ringing downstairs. This can only mean one thing-my Sally Lunn bread is ready to be taken out of the oven and eaten hot. God, I love a quite Sunday at home with the smell of fresh bread baking. There is much joy in the simple pleasures of life………my heart is filled with gratitude.

Sally Lunn Bread

James Villas, The Glory of Southern Cooking

1 envelope active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 cup lukewarm water

1 cup lukewarm whole milk

2 large eggs, beaten

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (Southern- White Lily)

1 stick butter, melted

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar-optional for a sweeter bread

In a large bowl, combine the yeast, sugar and water, stir, and let proof till bubbly, about 5 minutes. Add the milk and eggs and beat with a wooden spoon till well blended. Gradually add half the flour and continue beating till well mixed. Add the melted butter and salt and beat till well blended, then beat in the remaining flour and extra sugar if you want the sweet version till a softish dough forms. It will be somewhat sticky, don’t fret about this.

Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place till doubled in bulk, about an hour or so. Punch the dough down, cover again and let stand for about 15 minutes. You might need to sprinkle a pinch of flour before punching down so that the dough doesn’t stick to your hand.

Grease a 10inch tube pan generously with butter and then scrape the dough evenly in the tube pan. Cover and let rise again about 45-60 minutes till double in bulk.

Place in a preheated oven of 350degrees and bake till the loaf is lightly browned, which will take about 1 hour. Serve immediately hot out of the oven or cool on a wire rac, and serve at room temperature.

Right after Christmas I took a road trip to New England to visit family for the New Year.  We were welcomed by tons of snow and blustery cold days and of course lots of great food.  Coming down with a cold upon arriving has left me tired and worn, but I always manage to perk up at meal time. My mom made a huge platter of warm empanadas the other day to welcome the huge household gang upon returning from a trek in the snow. A trek I missed in lieu of a nap. But none the less , it is possible to work up a good appetite from taking a rest.

The empanadas were easy and the perfect solution for using leftover pork, though you could use cooked beef instead. We decided that next time we are going to try the recipe using half butter and half lard to make a flakier dough.  Please feel free to experiment using what you have on hand and what you like. With lots of young kids  in the house we opted for a non -spicy version of these yummy treats that I imagine would freeze very well.

They were even good out of the icebox cold the next day for a quick snack.

MOM’S EMPANADAS

Dough-

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup masa

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 sticks butter cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 cup ice water

Combine dry ingredients and sift together, set aside. Cut in butter till mixture resembles corn meal. Add 1 cup ice water gradually and gather mixture into a ball after combined. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or overnight.

Filling

6-8 pimento stuffed olives finely chopped

1 jalapeno seeds removed finely chopped

6 scallions-green tops only finely chopped

1 clove garlic finely chopped

1/2 medium onion finely chopped

1 cup shredded pork

1/2 cup currants or raisins

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/2 cup white wine

3 tbsp olive oil

salt and fresh pepper to taste

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 beaten egg

Saute onions, scallions and garlic in 3 tbsp olive oil till soft. Add jalapeno, olives, currants, pork and tomato paste. Then slowly poor in in wine. Cook for a minute or two till any liquid is absorbed. Set aside to cool slightly.

Roll 1/2 of dough on a lightly floured board. Cut 3 inch rounds from dough gathering up scraps for second rolling.  Roll circles out a touch more, then top with a tablespoon  of mixture in center. Fold over one side and then seal using the tines of a fork. Put onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  Brush tops lightly with beaten  egg wash.

When your sheet is full, bake in a 375degree preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes till lightly browned.  Enjoy warm or reheated the next day. This recipe makes enough to feed 12 hungry people as an afternoon snack.

A year ago, one of my goals was to sample a host of Shrimp and Grits meals in Charleston. This is a task that I have flat out failed at. In my defense, part of the blame is due to shrimp. I love them, but they don’t always love me. A huge belly ache and promises of never going back for more- often plague me.   

But this is the South and I when I get a hankering for Shrimp and Grits, nothing can stop me. Not even a household of non Shrimp and Grits lovers. It takes desire and determination to set about cooking a meal, knowing that the rest of the crew is going to turn up their noses and complain, even before you attempt to sway them with promises of a grand meal.

Sunday, I set out to make this simple dish for myself knowing that I would be alone basking in the splendor of Shrimp and Grits.  For me, simple is the best, and this dish is simple. There were few ingredients and a few steps; all giving many rewards for the effort. 

Mike was the chef at Anson’s before he opened up his own restaurant FIG in Charleston. I have not had the pleasure of eating at FIG, but have heard nothing but the best. The simplicity of his Shrimp and Grits is spectacular. Heading to work the day, I brought a dish for a co-worker who would appreciate this meal. She swooned over every bite, and shook her head in amazement that anyone could turn down a meal as good as this.

If you have never had the pleasure of dining in the Lowcountry, do your self a favor and try this dish. Make it a point to order your grits, freshly ground from Anson’s mill or one the other mills. Don’t even think about quick or instant or any other way of preparing grits other than the real thing; slow, long, occasional stirring while the grits are tended to for an hour or so. Too impatient-grab yourself a sweet tea and stay awhile, it’s Sunday.

Mike Lata’s Shrimp and Grits

GRITS:

2 cups milk

1 cup fresh white grits

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 SHRIMP:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons finely diced onion

3 tablespoons finely diced red bell pepper

2 ounces diced country ham

½ cup shrimp stock or milk

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives

6 dashes of hot sauce

Salt and freshly ground pepper

For the grits: Bring the milk just up to a tiny boil around the edge of a heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat. Add the grits and stir for 1 minute. Turn the heat to low. If there are any hulls, skim and remove them now using a slotted spoon. Add the butter, and stir frequently for the first 10 minutes, then stir every 10 minutes to grits are done, about 1 to 1 ½ hrs. Add more liquid if the grits are absorbing the milk. Cover between stirrings. When cream, add salt and pepper to taste.

For the shrimp: Melt the butter in a large, heavy bottom fry pan or enamel skillet. Add the onion and red pepper, cooking till translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the ham and sauté briefly. Stir in the milk or stock, scraping the sides and bottom of the skillet to deglaze the pan. Bring to a boil, and cook till the liquid is reduced by half. Add the cream, bring to a boil, and reduce the liquid making a loose sauce. Add the shrimp, stir, and cook till the shrimp turn pink. Add the chives and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Divide the grits among four plates, top with the shrimp and some of the sauce. Serve immediately. If you are cooking for less than two, this dish reheats well the next day, just use separate dishes to reheat separately.