SHRIMP AND GRITS

My daughter, Hannah has been telling me for several months now that she and her family like shrimp and grits and that I should try making it. I'm not a Southern gal. I was raised in Northern Indiana and then spent 30 years in MI. So up til now I had not had the opportunity to try it. It's definitely not a Northern dish! But let me tell you... this recipe packs a wallop of flavor! I think I would move it right up into the ranks of my top 10 favorites! I love shrimp anyway. And this just made me love it even more! Most of the recipes I read for this dish sounded quite bland - even those on the websites of popular TV chefs. But adding just the right spice to it, did the trick! If you like shrimp, you should put this on your menu for next week! It went together in a snap! I also don't use the regular white grits, but opted instead for polenta (yellow grits). Very yummy dish! And even better - hubby gave it a thumbs up! Not sure if it was because of the bacon that's added into the dish, but either way, he made me a happy woman! This one's going in the "keep" file!

SHRIMP AND GRITS

For the grits portion, I used my creamy polenta recipe that is featured on my blog in other places.

CREAMY POLENTA
1 1/2 cups low fat milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 (14 oz) can fat free, low sodium chicken broth
1 cup instant dry polenta
1/4 cup preshredded Parmesan, romano, asiago cheese blend (or just parmesan works too)
1/2 cup shredded, medium cheddar cheese
4 Tblsp butter


Bring first 4 ingredients to a boil in a med saucepan. Reduce heat to low and slowly add polenta, stirring constantly with a whisk, to prevent lumps. Cook 3 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and add parmesan, cheese blend and butter, stirring until cheese melts. Serve immediately. If it seems to thick, add a little more milk. It should be the consistency of creamy mashed potatoes. Yield: 8 servings (1/2 cup). Keep warm while you prepare the shrimp.

FOR THE GRITS PORTION

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

 1 tsp Slap yer Momma seasoning (could also sub old bay, or your favorite Cajun seasoning)

6 slices bacon, chopped (I cut mine with my kitchen shears)

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 cup thinly sliced green onions

1 large clove garlic, minced

 

Rinse shrimp and pat dry. Fry the bacon in a large skillet until browned; with slotted spoon, remove bacon to a separate bowl. In bacon fat that remains in skillet, add shrimp. Season with Slap yer Momma. Cook until shrimp turns pink. Add chopped bacon, parsley, green onions and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes.
Spoon grits into a serving bowl. Spoon shrimp mixture over top. (some say to stir the shrimp into the grits, but I think it presents nicer if you spoon it over the top) Serve immediately.
BLESSINGS!

Shrimp Bisque

Prepared this DEElicious Shrimp Bisque for my Honey for Valentine surprise. It was supposed to be our appetizer, but as soon as he smelled it cooking, he wanted to eat a bowl while the steaks were marinating! So we had our appetizer standing around the kitchen cooking the rest of the dinner. It really was that good! He has sort of a picky palate - so when he went on and on and on about how wonderful this bisque was and then said it was the best soup I've ever made AND ate LEFTOVEERS of it the next day.... I knew it was a red letter day! I marked it on the calendar that hubby ate leftovers. That alone confirmed to me that he truly did love it! Will be putting this one in the "make often" file!

SHRIMP BISQUE

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, shells reserved

4 cups seafood stock

3 tablespoons good olive oil

2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (3 leeks)

1 tablespoon chopped garlic (3 cloves)

Pinch cayenne pepper

1/2 cup White cooking wine (sold in the vinegar and marinade aisle)

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups half-and-half

1/3 cup tomato paste

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 tsp Creole seasoning (I used  Tony Cachere's)

 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning

*I added the Creole and Old bay on my own because we like a little spice and flavor. So this has a little bit of "zing" to it. If you are a weiner about spice, knock the amounts down to 1/2 tsp each.

Directions

Place the shrimp shells and seafood stock in a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and reserve the stock. Add enough water to make 3 3/4 cups.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the leeks and cook them for 10 minutes over medium-low heat, or until the leeks are tender but not browned. Add the garlic and cook 1 more minute. Add the cayenne pepper and shrimp and cook over medium to low heat for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the white cooking wine and cook for 3 minutes longer. Transfer the shrimp and leeks to a food processor fitted with a steel blade (I dare you not to sneek a taste of the sauteed shrimp!) and process until coarsely pureed. (The next time I make this, I will leave the shrimp pieces a little bigger).
In the same pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook over medium-low heat for 1 minute, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the half-and-half and cook, stirring with a whisk, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the pureed shrimp, the stock, tomato paste, salt, and pepper and heat gently until hot but not boiling. Season, to taste, and serve hot.