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Megan Lavine's Blog

Shrimp N' Grits...No' Cackalacky Style

I'm a Tar Heel born and bred (actually, I'm San Diego born and bred...but I was totally born with tar on my heels). Anyway, for all y'all that love Shrimp and Grits from the one and only Crook's Corner in Chapel Hill, NC, here you go. This is a tried and true recipe and it's absolutely delicious. Serve it with Southern biscuits, sweet tea (or sweet tea vodka and lemonade), a southern vegetable and banana pudding for dessert. You will be saying "y'all" in no time.

Crook's Corner Shrimp and Grits

Takes about 1 hour to make...I would recommend grabbing a "sous-chef" to help you with the grits while you make the shrimp.

Ingredients

2 cups water

1 (14 1/2 ounce) cans chicken broth

3/4 cup half-and-half

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup regular grits ( I used quick grits and they were fine)

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

3 slices bacon

1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup flour

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup sliced green onions

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup fat-free low-sodium chicken broth

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

lemon wedges

Directions

• Bring first 4 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually whisk in grits; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until thickened; add cheddar cheese and next 4 ingredients; set aside but keep warm.
• Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon and drain on paper towels, reserve 1 tablespoon of drippings in skillet; crumble bacon and set aside.
• Sprinkle shrimp with pepper and salt; dredge in flour.
• Saute mushrooms in hot drippings in skillet 5 minutes, or until tender; add green onions and saute 2 minutes; add shrimp and garlic and saute 2 minutes or until shrimp are lightly brown; stir in chicken broth, lemon juice and hot sauce and cook 2 more minutes, stirring to loosen browned bits from skillet.
• Divide grits into 4 large, shallow soup bowls; divide shrimp mixture into four servings and place on top of grits; top each serving with crumbled bacon and serve with lemon wedges.