Garlic Shrimp and Cheese Grits

Shrimp and grits is a classic southern dish. 

There are many variations and I probably 

would love them all! 

This one is a favorite because the shrimp are baked

 on top of the grits. No separate sauteing. 

It's a one pot dish. 

 Peel the shrimp and remove the tails too.
I used 20 L shrimp for two generous servings.

Toss the shrimp with olive oil, salt, pepper, 

garlic and cayenne. Cover and refrigerate 

while you prepare the grits.

 Chop the onion and thinly slice the 

scallion for the garnish.

 Ingredients: grits, chopped onion, butter, water,

 cream, Franks hot sauce, salt, pepper and cheese. 

 Saute the onion in the butter until soft.

 Add the water, cream, hot sauce, salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil.

 Slowly whisk in the grits, reduce heat and cook

 until thickened. Remove from heat.

 Whisk in the cheese.

Stir until combined.

Lay the marinated shrimp in a pinwheel pattern

 on top of the grits, pressing in halfway.

 Bake in a 375 oven for about 7 minutes, until the 

shrimp are cooked through.They will turn
opaque  and pink. Remove from the oven. 

Garnish with the sliced scallions.

 Say yes to Garlic Shrimp and Cheese Grits!

Pour the wine and enjoy!

Garlic Shrimp and Cheese Grits
8oz large shrimp (31-40 per pound),
about 18-20 shrimp
1 T olive oil
1 L garlic clove, minced
pinch cayenne pepper
salt & pepper
Toss together in a small bowl, cover and
refrigerate while you prepare the grits.
1 T butter
1 small onion, minced (about 1/2 C)
1-1/2 C water
1/2 C cream, or half&half
1/2 t salt & 1/4 t pepper
1/2 t hot sauce
1/2 C quick grits
1 C sharp cheddar cheese, grated (1 C)
1 scallion, thinly sliced for garnish
Melt butter in a 10" skillet over medium heat.
Add onion and cook, stirring often until softened,
3-5 minutes. Stir in the water, cream, salt, pepper,
and hot sauce. Bring to a boil then slowly whisk in
the grits. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring
often until the grits are thick and creamy.
(about 5-7 minutes for quick grits)
Remove from heat and stir in the cheese until
combined. Lay the shrimp on top in a pinwheel
formation pushing into the grits about halfway.
Drizzle with any leftover marinade ingredients.
Transfer the skillet into a preheated 375 oven
and bake for about 7 minutes until the shrimp
are cooked thru. They will be opaque and pink.
Remove from oven and scatter the chopped
scallions over the top
serves 2-3
Enjoy!

variation with bacon:
cook 2 strips of bacon in the skillet
until browned and crisp. Remove from the pan
and drain on a paper towel. Discard all but
 1 T bacon grease. Proceed as above
replacing the butter with the bacon grease.
Crumble the bacon and sprinkle on top along with
the sliced scallions.

Links: Facebook, Stone Gable,
Savvy Southern Style,
Between Naps On The Porch,
My Romantic Home, Designs By Gollum

The Easiest Most Amazing Way To Cook Corn-On-The-Cob!

If you love corn on the cob, but hate shucking 

and cleaning it, today is your lucky day!

No shucking! No pots! No boiling water!

No mess! No pesky silks!

Ready?

 This will change your life it's so easy!

(The corn on the cob part of your life anyway.)

 Put the corn into the microwave. 

Don't do anything to it.  

 Cook about 3-4 minutes per ear, 

depending how crunchy you like it..

 Use a pot holder to remove from the microwave.

 Cut off the bottom. About 1-2 inches.

 Now, grab the top silky end and give it a 

few shakes, maybe a little squeeze and 

VIOLA!

 It will slide right out!!!! 

It comes out clean with no silks attached.

 A-MAZE-ING!

Sweet crunchy corn on the cob!

Ready to slather with butter, and salt and pepper.

It's great if I want to make only one ear of corn

with no fuss.  So easy and so good!

Hope you try this and let me know!

Enjoy!

Links: A Stroll Thru Life,
Coastal Charm, Jam Hands,
Between Naps On The Porch,
Stone Gable, Tip Junkie,
Savvy Southern Style

Crock Pot Sauerbraten

This is a mock-sauerbraten. 

The real sauerbraten takes a lot of work. 

This crock pot version will give you that taste with

 5 minutes of prep, and it cooks all day while you
are doing something else.

 Ingredients.

Cut up the onion and put in the bottom of the
crock pot. Add the beef and season as desired
 with salt and pepper.

 Coat both sided with flour.

Add the remaining ingredients, cover and cook 

on low for about 8 hours. Thicken with the

cornstarch mixture. Cook 5' longer.

Serve with mashed potatoes, or better yet.....

Serve with my easy homemade spaetzle!

 Crock Pot Sauerbraten

3-5 lbs pot roast

1 C beef broth

(1 C water+2 beef bullion cubes)

2 T flour

2 bay leaves

1 onion, cut-up

1/2 C brown sugar

1/2 C cider vinegar

1/2 t allspice

1/2 t ginger

1/2 t salt

1/2 t pepper

Add the cut up onion to the crock pot.

Place the meat on top. Sprinkle with
flour and rub in, season as desired with 

salt & pepper. Turn the meat and repeat
on the other side. In a 2 C measure combine
the beef broth, vinegar, brown sugar, allspice,
 and ginger. Pour over and around the roast.
Add the bay leaves. Cover and cook on low

for about 8 hours until tender.

Thicken Gravy

Combine 2T cornstarch with

about 1/4 C water until blended.

Add to the crock pot. Stir and

raise the heat to high for

about 5 minutes until thickened.

Serve with my homemade spaetzle,

or mashed potatoes

Enjoy!

Quiche and Tell: Crab Quiche

I love quiche, so I made this old one from my

 recipe file over the weekend. Crab Quiche.

This yummy quiche has a few unusual ingredients.

If you have a piecrust ready, the rest of the 

ingredients are quickly mixed together. 

Shredded cheddar cheese, eggs,
sour cream, a can of French fried onions, 

a can of crabmeat, and seasonings. 

 Mix that all together.

 Pour into an unbaked pie shell.

 Bake for 35 minutes.

 A green salad or tomato salad would be a 

nice side. We had tea, but wine would be nice

too for company. A chocolate chip bundt

cake for dessert, company or not!

 Brunch or lunch.

Leftovers for the next day...a bonus! 

Ok, here's the recipe, because I quiche and tell!

Crab Quiche

3 XL eggs slightly beaten

1 can French fried onions, crushed

1 can crabmeat, drained 
1 C sour cream

1 C shredded cheddar cheese, 4-oz

garlic or seasoned salt, pepper, Old Bay

(season as desired)

Mix all ingredients and pour into an

unbaked pie shell. Bake @350 for 35 minutes.

Let rest for 5 minutes before cutting.

Enjoy!

Link: Between Naps On The Porch,
Rattlebridge Farm, My Romantic Home,
Funky Junk,

A New Chicken Parmesan

This Chicken Parmesan recipe is from
The Palm  restaurant.

It has a secret ingredient.

Start the sauce first so that it simmers while
you make the chicken.

Saute the garlic and basil leaves in olive oil.
This infuses the oil with flavor.

Add the canned tomatoes, wine, and

seasonings.

 I used a potato masher to mash the tomatoes.
Let simmer. This makes enough sauce to freeze
some. You can also cut the recipe in half, but I
 like to have sauce in the freezer for fast dinners.

 Flatten the boneless chicken breasts

 between plastic wrap with a rolling pin.

 Prepare 3 plates for the coating.
1. beaten eggs, 2. flour, 3. Italian breadcrumbs.

 Coat first with flour

 then coat with eggs

and last into the breadcrumbs.
Score with a knife.

 I cut each breasts in half. Let rest 10 minutes
 or you can cover and refrigerate at this point
and  finish the dish later.

Saute the chicken in hot oil for about

2-3 minutes on each side.

Pour a little sauce onto an ovenproof platter.
Place the chicken breasts on top. Spoon a little
sauce on the each piece of chicken and
sprinkle with shredded Parmesan cheese.

 Here's the secret ingredient.

Muenster Cheese 

 Lay a slice of muenster cheese on top of
each piece of chicken.

 Place under the broiler and watch carefully.

 When the cheese is melted and bubbly
remove from the oven and

Plate with pasta. I hope you like it.
The Muenster cheese gives it a
wonderful rich flavor. Once the sauce is
done the rest comes together pretty quickly.
Enjoy with a nice Pinot Noir.
Cheers!

Chicken Parmesan

Marinara Sauce

1/4 C olive oil

6 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 C fresh basil leaves, loosely packed

2  28-oz cans crushed tomatoes

1/2 C white wine

salt & pepper to taste

2 t sugar

1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan on 

medium high heat. Add the garlic cloves and stir

and cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Add the 

fresh basil and cook 1-2 minutes. Add the canned 

tomatoes and crush a bit with a potato masher. 

Add the wine, salt, and sugar. Simmer for 20-30

  minutes then add the crushed red papper flakes 

and about 10 turns of freshly ground pepper. 

Let simmer on low until needed.

You can cut this recipe in half, or put extra 

sauce in the freezer for another meal.

Chicken

2 boneless chicken breasts

1 C flour

1 C Italian breadcrumbs

2 eggs

2-3 T canola oil

Pound the chicken  flat between plastic wrap.

Put the flour on one plate. Whisk the egg on 

another plate and the breadcrumbs on a 

third plate. Take a flattened chicken breast and

 coat it first in flour, then in the egg, then in the

breadcrumbs. Make sure it is thoroughly coated,

then score with a knife. Cut each cutlet in half.

Let rest for 10  minutes or cover and 

refrigerate until ready to cook.

Heat the canola oil in a large skillet. 

Add the chicken and cook about two minutes

 on each side until browned.

Topping

Marinara sauce-about 4 C

8 T grated Parmesan cheese

4 slices Muenster cheese

Fresh basil leaves for garnish

Spread some of the sauce on the bottom 

of an ovenproof platter. Place the chicken

on top and add a spoonful of sauce and  about 

2 T grated parmesan on each piece.

Cover with a slice of Muenster.

Place under the broiler and watch carefully.

When all the cheese is melted and bubbling

remove from the oven and serve with pasta.

Garnish with basil leaves.

Enjoy!

Links: Stone Gable,
Savvy Southern Style,
Between Naps On The Porch,
Rattlebridge Farm, My Romantic Home