Southern Breakfast Napoleons – NOLA Series Part 3

Tags

bacon, breakfast, cheese, eggs, grits, napoleons, Southern, spinach

The best things of the South include grits, bacon, and fresh produce. I love that this recipe feels decadent but only takes minutes to put together. Can’t you just imagine sitting on a New Orleans street after a long night drinking and eating this to counteract the inevitable hangover?

For more recipes in this series, check out these links:

Barbecue Shrimp- NOLA Series Part 1

King Cake – NOLA Series Part 2

Southern Breakfast Napoleans (inspired by this recipe)

• 1 egg
• 3 slices of bacon
• 1/4 cup quick grits
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup shredded extra sharp chedder cheese
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup fresh spinach
• 6 small mushrooms, quartered
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a skillet, fry bacon until crispy. Drain and reserve the drippings. In a sauce pot, bring the water to a boil. Add salt and the grits. Cook according to package directions. In the bacon skillet, saute together the spinach and mushrooms with a bit of the bacon grease. Fry the egg to your desired doneness. (I like over easy.) When the grits are cooked, add in the garlic, cayenne, cheese, salt, and pepper. Mix well until cheese is melted. On a plate, spoon out the grits. Top with the spinach and mushrooms combination. Place the bacon slices and the egg on top of the greens. Though this recipe serves only one, you can multiple it no problem!

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Bacon Cheddar Scallion Breakfast Tart with Grits Crust

Tags

bacon, brunch, Dinner, food, grits, scallion, Southern, Supper, tart

This afternoon I was trying to figure out just what I was going to cook for dinner. I couldn’t think of anything so I perused my previous wordpress post “Likes” and saw this gorgeous tart, originally posted by Fifteen Spatulas. Please don’t be put off by the fact that my photos are not that fantastic (her photos are much better than mine) but the flavor was stupendous. There is only the hubby and I; a whole pie plate of food is may seem excessive but I am so glad that there are leftovers!

Bacon Cheddar Scallion Breakfast Tart with Grits Crust

• 1 1/2 cups yellow grits (NOT INSTANT!!!)
• 2 cups cold water
• 6 eggs
• 5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 scallions, diced
• 4 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
• 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• Salt and Pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease an 11 inch tart shell or a glass pie plate (I don’t have a tart pan) with butter or oil. In a saucepan, bring the yellow grits and water to a boil, then cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.  Season to taste with salt and pepper (you will need a lot of salt).  Spread the grits evenly out into the pan.

Bake for 20 minutes.  Take the tart out of the oven and let it cool slightly, and increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F.

Whisk to combine the eggs, bacon, scallions, mascarpone, and cheddar cheese.  Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper, and pour the mixture into the grits tart shell.

Fifteen Spatulas said to bake the tart for 15 minutes until the top is browned. My pie was no where near being done at that time. I covered it with foil and baked it another 15 minutes until the center was set.

Cheesy Garlic Baked Grits

Tags

casserole, cheese, Dinner, garlic, grits, Southern, Supper

Grits are the quintessential Southern food. Made of coarsely ground corn, grits can eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. With butter, cheese, jalapenos, garlic, red-eye gravy, shrimp, and greens. They are cheap, easy to prepare, and taste amazing. No self respecting Southerner would fix instant grits (unless the other options are oatmeal or starvation).

Paula Deen, the best known cook in the South, is the author of this recipe. I have to say I have made some minor adjustments. I love you, Paula, but a whole stick of butter is way too much for me. I really like this recipe and plan on making it again, with jalapenos the next time.

Cheesy Garlic Baked Grits

• 4 cups water
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup uncooked grits (not instant)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 1 1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack and sharp Cheddar cheese
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Dash of cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring water and salt to a boil. Add grits to the water. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking and clumping. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until they are thick and creamy. Place a small amount of hot grits into the beaten eggs and mix well. (The idea is that the eggs will be warmed and tempered so that when you add them to the grits, they wont become bits of scrambled eggs.) Add the egg mixture back to the grits, stirring well. Combine the butter, cheese, garlic and cayenne pepper. Pour into a greased 2 quart casserole dish and bake for 45 minutes. Top with additional cheese if desired. I did desire 🙂