True Grit: The Perfect White Corn Grits Recipe

Homemade Sausage 'n' Grits with Fried Eggs

I first learned what grits were years ago watching The Food Network, as Bobby Flay managed to put his ego aside on his show for an episode to allow his lovely wife to take over the screen to make her infamous cheesy grits. At the time I didn't have a clue what grits were, but what I did know is they were creamy, cheesy, comforting, and powerful enough to move Bobby Flay to declare them better than his own. I knew I would love them!

It wasn't until around two years ago that I finally got to taste grits for the very first time. Out for a special birthday meal for my boyfriend Chris' birthday, I took him to the now closed Southern-fusion restaurant Acadia to experience their highly praised Shrimp 'n' Grits. To simply list the flavours and textures going on in that bowl of southern heaven would do the dish no justice. The dish sounds far too simple when explained in the written word to live up to the complex dish that I was presented with. It was one of those perfect dishes that I will surely find myself alluding to for years to come, like some mythical tale, "the Legend of the Perfect Grits." Of course the perfection of the dish had much to do with the details; the little bits of shrimp speckling the creamy mixture, as well as oyster mushrooms, pimento cheese, and (as if it can't get any better) ham hock consommé; but those delicious details would be nothing if it didn't have the perfect base of silky, creamy, perfectly seasoned grits.

Being often thought of as a "poor-man's food," grits aren't always given the respect and attention they deserve. When carelessly prepared, grits can become dry, gluey, and bland, reminiscent of Oliver Twist's gruel, which in turn have given grits a bit of a bad rep. With such a basic preparation and so few ingredients, it's easy to get grits wrong. I can tell you first hand, that most of the grits recipes out there on the Internet will lead you astray, resulting in the mushy grits that one dreads.

Despite the sea of faulty grits recipes out in the world, there is one that I have come across that I have found to be far superior to any other grits recipe on the web. Although the recipe didn't seem to make much sense to me at first, Saveur's recipe for Old Fashioned Creamy Grits is perfection. Though it isn't much different from other grits recipes I have read, its the ratio of milk, to water, to grits that makes this recipe oh so creamy and delectable. More than just the initial milk/water/grits, this recipe ensures the creamiest results by finishing with not only a knob of butter (essential to all successful grits) but also an extra quarter-cup of cream, which gives this dish its silky, heavenly finish.

Whether prepared for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, grits are the perfect base for shrimp, sausage, eggs, and, let's face it, just about any protein or veg that needs a home! Forget about all those other grits recipes you've come across, and don't even bother reading the directions on the package of grits, because Saveur's Old Fashioned Creamy Grits is where it's at!

Find this recipe and more on my Pinterest board Recipes I Love!

Listening To:

The Dø - Sparks

Jamie Oliver's Chicken in Milk & A Lesson In Adapting

Homemade Jamie Oliver's Chicken in Milk

Did you know that reading and interpreting recipes is actually a skill? In culinary school last year, one of the very first things our class was taught was how to analyze a recipe. We were told to never start cooking from a recipe without reading through each and every line and asking ourselves "does this make sense?" Since that class I have learned that about 50% of the time, at least one part of a recipe will not make sense...sometimes not even a little. This is precisely why reading a recipe before you begin cooking, is so very important, allowing you to adapt the recipe using your own knowledge on the theory of food and cooking to ensure a successful final product. Despite having this knowledge ingrained in my head, I can't help but want to trust certain recipes, no matter how much my brain is screaming at me "THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY DAMN SENSE!" 

Last week my cooking instincts and knowledge of food theory was put to the test as I embarked on recreating three recipes from the lovely Jamie Oliver. I have to start by saying that I absolutely adore Jamie, I own several of his gorgeous cookbooks, and had previously felt that the man could do no wrong...that was until I tried making Jamie's Aubergine Daal with Handmade Chapatis. 

Aubergine Daal with Homemade Chapatis - Photo provided by jamieoliver.com

After catching a Sunday morning episode of Save With Jamie last week, come Monday all my boyfriend Chris and I could think of was recreating the savoury and seemingly simple and cheap vegetarian Indian daal dish. We collectively gathered all of the required ingredients (including the difficult to find curry leaves, which we picked up at House of Spice in Kensington Market) and began making our dinner. Everything was all hunky dory and as easy as can be...that is until it came to cooking the split yellow peas for the daal. 

When I read the recipe my brain kicked in and told me "you know better than to cook peas in that much water, not to mention with the lid on!!" and yes, I should have known better, but I trusted Jamie! Sure enough, the peas that Jamie told us would take an hour and 20 minutes absolutely did not. After the suggested time, our peas were still hard and the liquid was still at the same level in the pot. With our stomachs growling, and the eggplant getting cold, we had to adapt! 

Although we were worried about losing flavour, we removed about 2 cups of the liquid from the pot, removed the lid, and jacked the heat so the remaining liquid would begin to evaporate. After about 20-30 minutes we finally had a thick and delicious mixture of split peas, Rogan Josh curry, and roasted eggplant and onions. Despite our struggles with the recipe, the final dish turned out incredibly delicious and provided lunch for the next few days, not to mention was fantastic added to a chicken pot pie filling! With our revisions in mind, we will absolutely be making this recipe again! 

Jamie Oliver's Sunday Roast - Photo provided by leitesculinaria.com

The very next day I decided to give my dear Jamie another shot. With family coming over for dinner, I felt the need to impress, and chose to recreate Jamie's Sunday Roast. I read the recipe, and the alarm bells started going off...and just as I had done the previous night, I ignored them. The recipe called for searing the prime rib all over on the stove, and then placing it directly in a 475ºF oven to cook for 50-minutes, rest for another 30-minutes, and then carve and serve. Already this recipe didn't make any damn sense, but Chris told me to trust a Brit with making a roast, so I did. 

Of course, after the recommended 50-minutes of cooking at 475º, our roast was only at 60ºF, when it should have been 120ºF (for a medium-rare roast). I lowered the heat to 325º and continued roasting (while checking every 20-minutes or so) until the internal temperature reached the desired 120º. After an additional 50 minutes or so, the roast was finally at 120º, making it a perfect medium-rare 130º after a 30-minutes rest. 

On top of the wonky cooking method for the roast, the recipe also instructed cooks to boil cubed Russet potatoes (THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE! Russet's want DRY heat!) for 10-minutes (that's too long!), and then roasting in the oven with the remaining roast juices. Sure enough the potatoes became far too tender after being boiled for 10-minutes, and could easily be crushed with my fingertips. Though the potatoes still tasted good in the end, the texture was off, making me regret not following my instincts and selecting Yukon Gold potatoes instead of the Russets. Although the recipe had me pulling out my hair like the previous night, the roast turned out fantastic in the end, and definitely impressed my family! 

Jamie Oliver's Chicken in Milk - Photo provided by jamieoliver.com

Believe it or not, two near-recipe fails did not deter me from giving Jamie one more shot! I adore the man, and refused to believe that all of his recipes would leave me in such despair. After reading rave reviews of Jamie's Chicken in Milk, with many declaring it to be "the best roast chicken recipe ever," I was sure that I had found a perfect Jamie recipe that wouldn't require any revisions. I embarked on what just may be the simplest roast chicken recipe ever, and despite my brain wondering how this recipe would work (seriously, chicken with milk!? Really?!) it went off without a hitch! With only one minor revision thanks to a bloggers suggestion (leaving the lid on for half the cooking time) the roast chicken turned out absolutely incredible! The chicken was wonderfully moist, so flavourful, and pulled away from the bones in the most gloriously beautiful way. It was, dare I say, near perfect! 

Although I had a couple of minor breakdowns last week due to my hangry temper, I was glad to have learned from these recipes. This lesson once again proved that I know more than I think I do, and I should always (always!) trust my instincts in the kitchen. Jamie, I still love you and think you're the bomb. I don't know how those method errors escaped your recipe testers, but I forgive you for giving me such delicious final products in the end. Let's chat more over dinner, this time, you're cooking! 

What recipe kept you on your toes and had you revising on the fly? Tweet me @thisgingerrose.

Listening To:

Dead Air - Chvrches

January Food Hacks Roundup

2-Ingredient Pizza Dough

2-Ingredient Pizza Dough: Two-ingredient pizza dough is a thing, and it's actually really good! Check out my hack for making fantastic pizza dough with only two basic ingredients! I topped my pizza with a sweet and savoury combo of pears, prosciutto, BBQ sauce, and fresh arugula.

30-Second Meatballs

30-Second Meatballs: Hate the repetition of mixing and forming meatballs by hand? Then I've got just the hack for you with my 30-Seconds meatballs! These babies take literally seconds to form and mere minutes to cook, perfect for busy weeknights! 

Asian Sesame Salad in Wonton Cups

Asian Sesame Salad In Wonton Cups: You CAN make friends with salad, and this is just the hack to do it! Wonton wrappers make the perfect serving dish for Asian Sesame Salad when formed into muffin tins and baked until crispy!

Grilled Cheese Dippers

Grilled Cheese Dippers: Do you love taking your grilled cheese for a dip in tomato soup? This awesome fusion food combines two cheesy comfort food favourites (grilled cheese and cheese sticks!) for the ultimate lunchtime treat! 

Stay up to date with all of my food hacking tips and tricks by following me on the @FoodHacks Twitter page! 

Listening To:

Caribou - Back Home 

Ina Knows Best: The Ultimate Aglio E Olio

It's 6:00 pm on a Wednesday and there's nothing to make for dinner! This may sound alarming for some, or perhaps may just be a warning to the lacklustre meal that is surely ahead, but to me it means that I'm in store for a delicious and satisfying dinner that will take minimal effort, and leave me with a full belly, leftovers for lunch, a smile on my face, and olive oil running down my chin. I'm talking about the beauty in the simplicity of Aglio E Olio, which translates to "garlic and oil" referring to the Italian quickie-meal, pasta (generally spaghetti) with garlic and olive oil. 

For something so incredibly simple, it's amazing how much of an impression this dish can make. My boyfriend, Chris, and his friends for one, adore this dish with such passion that I don't think there has been a gathering where the suggestion of making it hasn't come up. I've lost count of the number of times they have disputed who makes the best aglio e olio, or what little detail makes their aglio e olio stand out, because with a dish this straightforward it really is all in the details! 

Despite everyone thinking that their aglio e olio is the best, I have to give the top award to my dear lovely Ina Garten, because well, Ina knows best! When Chris first came across this recipe we were skeptical whether the method made any sense. It seemed incredibly strange to firstly, begin the whole process by cooking the pasta, secondly, to cook the garlic in so much pasta water (1 1/2 cups!). We were imagining noodles drowning in bland garlic water. How dare I distrust my dear future-best-friend, Ina! I should have known that Ina always knows best! Of course Ina's take on aglio e olio was absolutely fantastic, and quickly became my boyfriend and I's go-to dinner! The addition of the pasta water, reduced to enhance the flavour of the garlic, prevented us from feeling like we had to douse our pasta in cups of olive oil to impart flavour, as well as helping the olive oil and garlic sauce to stick to the noodles, thanks to the starch in the cooking water. 

Although Ina's recipe is great on it's own, I would suggest rendering down some pancetta or better yet, sopressata, at the beginning of cooking. Set meat aside after cooking and toss it in again at the end of cooking to reheat. That spicy, salty bite does wonders for this dish! Another great tip is to make some homemade garlic breadcrumbs to garnish the pasta to give a little bit of crunch to each bite. 

Check out Ina's recipe for Aglio E Olio here!

Listening To:
Caribou - Dive

Empty-The-Freezer Banana Nut Muffins

Happy new year, dear readers! I hope you all had a wonderful and safe holiday season and have already kicked off 2015 to a great start! I have spent the majority of 2015 laying on my couch being a nasty mucous monster (apologies for giving you such a gross visual on a food blog, of all places) and coughing up a storm to my not-so-new roommates delight (that's right friends, I have updates!). I, like it seems most people in Toronto as of late, have been struck with a vicious two-week long cold, leaving me largely immobile, lazy, and indulging in lots of self pity for my very gross and stuffed-up state. 

Over the last few days, as my energy has begun to come back and I've started to feel like a real human again, I've had a lot of time to reflect on this past year, looking at what I've accomplished, what I had hoped to accomplish, and what I want out of this new year. Just like many new years of past, I once again have vowed to myself to focus more on my blog, putting as much of my creative energy into it as possible. I know, for the past while I have totally fallen off the grid in terms of Ginger Rose, focusing my time and energy on an exciting new project (hello Kraft Food Hacks!) as well as a wonderful new living situation, that has allowed me to fall asleep and wake up with a smile on my face just about every single day. 

In October I moved into a beautiful condo with the man I love, which has given me a much needed fresh start as I begin a new phase of my life. This is the first time in my life that I have not lived under my mothers (and best friends!) roof, which, let me tell you, feels so incredibly liberating! Don't get me wrong, living with my mom was so lovely in so many ways, but being able to have this new sense of freedom and responsibility, while living side-by-side with my incredible boyfriend, Chris, has been amazing! 

I could go on and on listing all of the things that I adore about living on my own, but they would come as no surprise. The real surprise for me was discovering just how much I enjoy taking care of my own space, my own home. I love being able to take pride in having a clean, tidy, and stylish home that I am always so thrilled to welcome guests into. I look forward to coming home and fluffing the pillows and wiping the kitchen counter, just to stand back and view my space with the same satisfaction as receiving an 'A' on a University paper. Thank goodness Chris shares this same value or I would surely come across as some sort of psycho killer. Just like myself, Chris views maintaining our space as a fun activity that we can take part in together, almost like a real life game of Tetris. 

Last week, as 2014 was coming to a close, both Chris and I were feeling the need to rearrange parts of our space, giving it the same fresh start we knew we both needed this year. The first step in our mission was to tackle the freezer, going through each and every nook and cranny to eliminate all of the nonsense and organize the remnants of what was left. What was left was a drawer full of over 10 frozen bananas (are we monkeys?!), 4 containers of pecans, 3 bags of coconut, 2 bags of chocolate chips, and oh so very much more. There was no doubt about it, banana muffins were in order! 

I quickly found a simple and delicious-sounding banana muffin recipe that would allow me to use up as much of the bananas, coconut, and nuts from the freezer as physically possible. The muffins turned out incredible, with a sweet crumble topping giving the muffins a wonderful crunch, and nuts and chocolate chips in every bite! 

What are you hoping to accomplish this year? 

* This will allow your muffins to be extra moist!

Recipe adapted from hiddenponies.com

Ingredients:
Muffins:
6 bananas, very ripe 
2 eggs
1 cup butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup pecans, chopped and lightly toasted 
3/4 cup chocolate chips
Crumble Topping:
4 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
2/3 cup quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup pecans, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line with paper liners.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the bananas and blend at medium-speed until mashed. 
3. Add the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla and blend well to combine. 
4. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. 
5. With the mixer on low, add in the flour mixture in 4 increments, until just blended.  Stir in the pecans and chocolate chips by hand. 
6. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 of the way up with the muffin batter. Fill any empty muffin cups half way with water.*
7. In a small bowl mix together the crumble topping ingredients. Top each muffin evenly with the crumble topping and bake for 17-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of a muffin comes out clean. Enjoy!

Listening To:
Caribou - Our Love