True Grit

Before I get started, I think it’s important to note that Chris and I started a 5 day cleanse this morning! After an amazing weekend full of booze and junk food in New Orleans, we decided it was the right time.

I don’t want to give away too many details yet but so far, so good, and we’ll be sharing our experience on the blog once we’re done. So yeah, if you see us this week, be kind and don’t feed the animals…we’re on a cleanse!

I’ve noticed recently (and we’re surely not the only ones) that grits, the southern breakfast staple, have become wildly popular, especially this summer. It seems like they’re on every menu, at every wedding reception, and in every Pinterest recipe, and I’m TOTALLY on board. I love grits! Chris (aka Grits Mama) orders them for brunch every week…she’s become a bit of a grits snob.

I love them for being gluten-free, but I’ve loved them since forever. My brother and I used to eat them for breakfast as youngsters. I used to enjoy mine with sugar and butter, and I think Arlo liked cheese grits, which is another reason why I love grits so much…they’re so multifaceted! They can be enjoyed at any meal with the right additional ingredients.

Here are a few of my favorite grit-pins I’m dying to try (post-cleanse).

Roasted Tomato Grits with Goat Cheese and Corn

 

Grits & Greens + Corn

Grits & Greens bake

We’ve been missing our crock-pot meals this summer, so Chris found this intriguing recipe on Pinterest that combined our current grits obsession with our crock-pot desires, so we decided to give it a whirl!

BBQ Pot Roast over Cheddar Ranch Grits

The Roast
2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 (4-5 lb.) boneless chuck roast, trimmed
1 12 oz. can of coke
1 12 oz. bottle chili sauce (we used Sriracha)
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup milk

Start by sprinkling garlic salt and pepper over roast, then put the roast into the crock-pot.  

Next, pour chili sauce, and Worcestershire sauce, and coke over roast. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours.

Remove roast from slow cooker, reserving juices in slow cooker. Cover the roast with foil to keep warm.

Combine cornstarch and milk, stirring well; stir into slow cooker.

Cook, uncovered on high 15 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Serve sauce over roast.

The Grits

1 1/2 cup quick cook grits (not instant)
3 cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp. Ranch dressing mix
1 1/2 - 2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In a medium pan, bring chicken broth to a boil.  Slowly stir in grits.  Reduce heat to medium low.  Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally Stir in Ranch mix and cheese.  Cook until cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.

So this was another one of those nights where I worked late, then had Frisbee until 9:00PM, so my sweet little Chris nugget made all of this on her own. She’s the best.

I got home, ate off of the china, and it was delicious—spicy, but delicious.

Here’s what she had to say for next time:

• If you’re not a huge spicy foods person, Maybe use ½ the amount of chili sauce and replace it with your favorite BBQ sauce (ours is Sweet Baby Ray’s) – our mouths were on FIRE, almost so much so that we couldn’t eat it.
• The grits were AMAZING. We’re going to use the grits part of the recipe again as a side dish.

Just writing this post is making me hungry for real food, so I’m going to keep it short and sweet. I’ll share our NOLA adventure later this week. Here’s a sneak peak. It’s pretty much my new favorite place.