SHRIMP AND GRITS CAKES

Feeds 4

Much of the great food of New Orleans in particular, and the South in general, is dipped and fried in wheat flour or built on bread. But the dish of creamy cheese grits and shrimp I swooned over at one of Emeril Lagasse’s restaurants in New Orleans inspired me to come up with this dish with Danny after I returned home.

• For the grits
• 1 cup stone-ground corn grits (see Note)
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 3½ cups whole milk (try goat’s milk, if you have access to it)
• 1 cup chicken stock (if you’re using boxed stock, make sure it’s gluten-free)
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 4 ounces (1 cup) freshly grated aged white Cheddar cheese
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• For the shrimp
• 1 pound collard greens, stems and center ribs discarded
• 5 thick slices bacon, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 16 large shrimp (about 1 pound), peeled and deveined
• ½ cup chicken stock (if you’re using boxed stock, make sure it’s gluten-free)

Prepare to cook. In a small bowl, stir together the grits and salt.

Simmer the liquids. Set a small pot over medium heat. Pour in the milk and stock and whisk to combine. Bring the liquids to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and keep the liquids simmering, stirring occasionally.

Sauté the garlic. Set a Dutch oven over medium heat. Pour in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. When the oil is hot, toss in the garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic releases its scent, about 2 minutes. Please don’t burn the garlic.

Cook the grits. Pour the grits and salt onto the garlic. Whisk them up. Slowly, pour in some of the hot liquid, whisking the entire time. Keep whisking, as this will help release the starches from the grits, making the final result creamy. Pour in more liquid and keep whisking. When all the liquid is incorporated into the grits, keep occasionally whisking and stirring and cooking the grits until they are wonderfully creamy, about 45 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Finish the grits. Add the cheese, parsley, and smoked paprika to the grits. Stir well to combine.

Mold the grits cakes. Use the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil to brush the insides of a standard-size muffin tin. Fill each muffin cup halfway with the grits. (If you have some left over, you could eat those creamy grits right away.) Chill the muffin tin in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, and preferably 2 hours.

Prepare the collards. Roll each leaf of collard greens into a long cigar shape. Cut the collard leaf into thin slices, leaving you with ribbons of collards.

Heat the grits cakes. Turn the oven onto broil. Unmold the grits cakes and put them in a couple of skillets. Brush them with olive oil and put them under the broiler. Heat until they are golden and piping-hot, about 3 minutes.

Cook the shrimp. Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Put in the bacon and cook, stirring, until the bacon pieces are crisp and browned, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside the bacon and keep the fat in the skillet.

Cook the garlic in the hot bacon grease until its scent is released, about 2 minutes. Add the butter. When the butter is melted, add the shrimp and pour in the stock. Stir and cook until the stock has reduced and the shrimp has cooked through, about 2 minutes. Take out the shrimp and add the collards to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the collard ribbons are wilted and have turned darker green, about 5 minutes.

Combine the bacon, cooked shrimp, collards, and all the goodness from the skillet together.

Serve by giving each person 2 hot grits cakes, with the shrimp and collards mixture tumbled over the top.

Note: Stone-ground grits are well worth seeking out or buying online. I love the grits from Anson Mills, which grows and mills heirloom grains from the South. They do have gluten in the factory but seem to take great care to avoid cross-contamination. I’ve never grown sick from eating their grits.

Feel like playing?

Cooking collards with shrimp isn’t one bit traditional, so you can keep it simpler by cooking the bacon and shrimp together. But it’s nice to have a few vegetables in your dinner. If you’re in a hurry, you can use quick-cooking grits for this dish, which will take about 5 minutes to cook. But they will never yield the same true corn taste and creaminess that come from taking your time.