When in the South Eat Grits!

When I go to Charleston about once a year for a delightful girls week with my high school girlfriends, we do a lot of eating at some fabulous restaurants, shopping in between seeing the historical sites of Charleston and doing some more shopping! One of my favorite places to eat for breakfast is Sea Biscuit Cafe on Isle of Palms.  If you go to Sea Biscuit, make sure your take cash because they don’t take credit cards or checks.

Shrimp and grits with “brown gravy” is considered one of the older, basic variations of the dish.  Here is a recipe for Shrimp and Grits with Brown Gravy.

Makes 4-6 servings

For the grits:

• 6 cups water
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 2 cups stone-ground yellow grits
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• Salt to taste

For the shrimp:

• 1/4 pound sliced country ham
• 1/4 onion, chopped fine
• 1/4 pound butter, melted
• 1 cup flour  (I’d only use about 1/4 cup and see what happens, you can always add more, 1 cup seems like a lot)
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 3 cups water
• 3 pounds peeled shrimp, tails off

To make the grits: Heat water, cream and butter until boiling. Lower heat to a simmer and whip in grits with a wire whisk. Allow to simmer for approximately 15 minutes, whisking occasionally. Turn off heat and fold in the cheese. Add salt to taste.

To make the shrimp: Fry ham and onion together with melted butter for 15 minutes. Add flour and mix together well. Add beef broth, garlic and water. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring constantly. Add shrimp to gravy and simmer until shrimp are done. Serve over grits.