By now you know that I LOVE brunch at home. Think I did two or three post on the great dishes and successful experiments that came out of me having brunch in my own dining room amongst my cool friends. This post is nothing short of deliciousness like past features. Like you, I mostly work Monday through Friday – long ass (but fashionable) hours staring at spreadsheets, attending meetings and sneaking selfies when no one is looking. That leaves the weekends for me be creative with food and I look forward to my time spent prepping and cooking. This weekend for instance, I wanted to use the course ground yellow cornmeal I bought months ago at the Union Square Farmers Market. I wanted to make grits, to be eaten with shrimp. A dish with southern roots, and a permanent spot on menus of restaurants I frequent for brunch. Funny, I recently started to eat grits. I was used to and contented with my breakfast porridges being, well, sweet and not savory. But my outlook has changed and I now enjoy the creaminess and the easiness of grits for breakfast. I loved the way the grits came out using the yellow cornmeal rather than using white corn or hominy. The glistening vibrant color of the corn and its creamy texture made it easy for me to devour. Sautéed shrimp and lobster meat in a vegetable sauce made with fortified stock, and a side dish of fried sweet plantains. Man, all I can say is that you definitely need to recreate this meal for your friends and family. Go ahead, serve it up in colorful mismatched bowls to make it more of an enjoyable brunch at home.
Notes
- I like grits that is not too cheesy or too thick so I cooked the grits in chicken stock. You can use vegetables stock to make it vegan/vegetarian
- I’m Trinidadian, minced garlic and fresh thyme had to be added to the stock for added flavoring.
- Warm coconut milk finished the grits, only because that’s what I had.
- Thin slices of Cabot aged cheddar was mixed in at the end and left to melt into the grits until it was time to serve.
4 ½ cups of chicken stock
2 cup coarse ground cornmeal
1/2 cup of coconut milk
1 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tablespoons salted butter
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 cloves of garlic minced
3 ounces sharp Cheddar
Place the stock, minced garlic, thyme, salt and pepper in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Once all of the cornmeal has been incorporated, continue to whisk for about 3-4 minutes, to prevent the grits from sticking or forming lumps. Add 2 Tbsp. of butter, cover and allow to cook on low heat for 20 to 25 minutes. Take the thyme stalks out and whisk in the coconut milk until the grits are creamy. Taste for additional seasoning and add the cheese slices to melt.
Serve hot.
