Best-ever Shrimp and Grits

I've heard that no two people make shrimp and grits exactly alike. Heck, I don't even make it the same way twice in a row, mostly because I don't tend to follow recipes. Funny, huh, since I write recipes? But those are mainly for the folks who don't prefer to wing it, as I do. At any rate, most of the time I throw stuff together with what ingredients I have on hand. In this particular case, I really only had the basics: shrimp, and grits. I also had some andouille sausage--albeit a mild but still flavorful rope of Johnsonville brand--and a batch of homemade Emeril's "Essence," aka Cajun seasoning. Alas, I didn't have any fresh bell pepper or celery, two-thirds of the holy trinity of Creole and Cajun cooking, but I did have an onion. A decent start, but not quite enough.

I scrounged in the cupboard, hoping I had a jar of roasted red peppers. What I found was one jar of sundried tomatoes and another of Trader Joe's Sweet Picante Peppers with Creamy Cheesy Filling. Hoping these wouldn't be too sweet, I cracked open the jar and popped one into my mouth. MMmmmm! Not as sweet as Peppadews, a bit softer in texture. These would work! I squeezed out the cheesy filling to use in the grits, and chopped up some smoked gouda--who doesn't like cheesy grits? There were some leftover mushrooms in the fridge as well. Why not? 

I wasn't really surprised that the finished dish was tasty. While the elements were thrown together somewhat haphazardly, none of them were particularly weird. There were lots of good textures: smooth grits, perfectly cooked shrimp, soft mushrooms and onions, the slight chew of sundried tomatoes. Since most of the ingredients were pre-seasoned, I really only needed a pinch of salt to draw out the moisture while cooking the onion and mushrooms. It all worked amazingly well, enough for Mr Minx to declare the dish "restaurant quality." 

Shrimp & Grits

This was so good, I'm recording the recipe so I could maybe make it again some day. Not that I'll ever have this same perfect storm of ingredients on hand. But maybe?

For the shrimp:

1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning

extra virgin olive oil 

1/2 large onion, sliced

4 ounces white mushrooms, sliced

pinch salt

1/2 13.5-ounce pack Johnsonville Andouille sausage, sliced about 1/3" thick

6-7 Trader Joes Sweet Picante Peppers with Creamy Cheesy Filling

3-4 sundried tomatoes in oil, roughly chopped

For the grits:

2 1/4 cup water

1/2 cup regular or old fashioned (not quick) grits

2-ish ounces chopped smoked gouda

the cheese from the picante peppers

garlic powder

Chopped parsley for garnish 

To make the shrimp:

Toss the shrimp in a bowl with the Cajun seasoning and a healthy drizzle of the olive oil. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Put the onion and mushrooms in a saute pan with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil. Cook over medium heat until the veg have given up their liquid and have softened and browned a bit. Scrape into a bowl and set aside. 

Add a touch more oil to the pan and brown the sausage pieces.

While the sausage is cooking, squeeze the cheese from the peppers. Chop the peppers roughly. Add the peppers and the sundried tomatoes to the onion and mushrooms. Add the browned sausage to the bowl. Deglaze the saute pan with a bit of water--half a cup or so--and add that water to the bowl, too.

Cook the shrimp in the same pan over medium-high heat, turning once, until all shrimp are opaque on both sides. A tip: don't walk away while you're cooking shrimp. They cook FAST. You just need 3-4 minutes. After that, they're on the fast track to rubber-town. Once the shrimp are opaque, pour in the veg and water, turn the heat up to high, and bring to a boil. Cook until everything is hot, just a couple minutes. Taste the liquid for seasoning and add more salt and Cajun seasoning if you think it needs it.

To make the grits:

Bring the water to a boil. Whisk in the grits, then turn the heat down to low. Cover the pot and cook until the grits have absorbed the water and become tender, stirring occasionally, 15-20 minutes. Add the cheeses and the garlic powder and stir until the cheese is completely melted.

Dollop the grits onto plates, spoon shrimp mixture on top. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Serves 3-4, depending on appetite.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Best of 2023

2023 started strong, with a trip to NYC and lots of good things to eat. Another trip to NY in June ensured some good summer eating. But then the rest of the year was kinda pfffftttt, culinarily. We've been stuck in a rut, going to the same handful of restaurants over and over. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just not a good thing. Then we had COVID from the end of September through mid-October and didn't really want to go out in public even after we had recovered. Plus, I didn't have any interest in food for a few weeks (I know - hard to believe!). 

Hopefully, we'll do better in 2024!

January

vegan cheeses from Riverdel in the Essex Market, NYC

I had no idea that vegan cheese could be so good! I had only tried the standard supermarket crap, which is fine if you enjoy Kraft Singles, but not if you're fond of cheese that couldn't pass for plastic. Riverdel cheese sells only vegan cheese, which is actual cheese made the way cheese is normally made, only without the use of animal milks. I can no longer remember the three cheeses I tried, though I believe one was a cheddar and another was a blue, but they were all fantastic. My non-lactose-intolerant companion kept asking for more "tastes" of my snack. Get yer own, girlie. This is mine.

el supremo at Golden West Cafe

Another vegan surprise was the vegan fried chicken sandwich at Golden West Cafe. Made by Melanie Molinaro's Little Fig Bake Shop in Rosedale, the free-form, plant-based glob of deliciousness is coated with a craggy brown crust and mimics a deep fried chicken breast extremely well. Golden West adds a brioche bun, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and their version of thousand island, along with reasonably mozzarella-like fried vegan cheese sticks. Like most everything at Golden West, the sandwich is huge, but also delicious. 

February

homemade shrimp & grits

I made shrimp and grits more than once in 2023, but the best time was when I topped the garlicky shrimp with roasted red pepper and fried salami. It seemed Italian, so I added fennel seeds, too. 

March

everything pizza without green pepper, from Squire's

There will never be a time when pizza from Squire's won't be one of the best things I've eaten.

kupati at Tbiliso

The Georgian pork sausage called Kupati made last year's list, and it was just as amazing in 2023.

vegan fried green tomatoes at Golden West Cafe

Yet another vegan item on the list of best things I ate in 2023 is the fried green tomatoes from Golden West. It looks absolutely hideous, I know, but the vegan pimento cheese and herb aioli were both outstanding and passed for animal-based products. The tomatoes were fried perfectly, too. 

shrimp liang and pancit at Heritage Kitchen

Sadly, Heritage Kitchen closed its doors in 2023, but we made sure to get in our fix of Chef Rey Eugenio's Filipino dishes more than once. The shrimp liang was my favorite, from the rice and greens to the shrimp and crispy squares of pork belly. 

chicken and lamb kebabs with Shirazi salad at Villagio Cafe

Another sure winner is anything at Villagio Cafe. Though their rice dishes are uniformly tasty, when I'm on Whole30, I prefer a side of Shirazi salad, a simple combination of bell pepper, onion, tomato, and cucumber.  

April

egg fu yung at Kung Fu 12

Just for the heck of it, we ordered egg fu yung at Kung Fu 12; the veggie option with broccoli sounded good. Minds were blown when we received crunchy deep-fried clouds of egg filled with barely-cooked vegetables, and a cup of cornstarch-thickened gravy on the side. It was closer to a cross between tempura and beer-battered onion rings than to the gravy-drenched omelets we expected. Fabulous, and now one of our regular orders. 

May

woodlands pie from Underground Pizza Company

Underground Pizza Company makes the list again this year with their stunning mushroom pie. I can't even explain how good their crust is, and the mix of sauteed wild mushrooms on top puts it over the top.

June

moussaka at Nautilus Diner

When I see moussaka on the specials menu at Nautilus, I order it. While the inch of bechamel makes it a lactose-intolerant person's nightmare, everything else about it is perfection.

pineapple fried rice from Mr Fried Rice at Urban Hawker, NYC

During a marathon eating extravaganza with my friend Daisy, I devoured more than half of this flavorful rice dish. Those flower cut pieces of squid you see at the bottom front were insanely tender, there was just enough pineapple in it that you noticed but not because it was too sweet, and the pork floss on top added interesting texture and crunch. Can't wait to eat this again.

pistachio supreme from Lafayette NYC

Lafayette's spiral pastries made from laminated dough (think croissants) filled with custard (this one is pistachio) are Instagram-famous for a reason. They are fabulous.

crab cake on fettuccine with vodka sauce at Pappas Parkville

I seldom order pasta in a restaurant, but I couldn't pass up this special at Pappas. Their crab cakes are huge and very good, and the pasta was excellent. Best part is that there was a ton of sauce, so between Mr Minx's and my leftovers and adding a few more ounces of fettuccine, we had a bonus crab vodka pasta dinner.

July

homemade hearts of palm "crab"cake over quinoa and esquites.

I made some pretty impressive faux crab cakes out of canned hearts of palm. Sure, they're a little tangier than real crab, but the texture is similar and they are tasty in their own right.

August 

melon, burrata, marcona almonds, gnocchi at Kneads Bakery

This dish had so much going on, all of it good. It was a cheese course kinda dish because there was a sweetness to it that isn't normally found in an appetizer, and the gnocchi were more like donut holes than pasta, but damn, so tasty. I regret not going back to eat it again before the menu changed.

roasted cauliflower with EWF seasoning 

Seems like I put the seasoning mix that Earth, Wood, and Fire uses on their chicken wings on lots of things, and one of the best was roasted cauliflower. If you look hard enough on this blog, you'll find the recipe, but it won't be credited to the restaurant because I told them it would be a secret. It was, for years, until now it's not.

December

lentil and duck salad at Petit Louis

Neal and I snuck out for a 3-course lunch at Petit Louis a few weeks before Christmas and enjoyed a lovely French lentil and duck confit salad as our appetizer. It was so good, I invested in a bag of Puy lentils so I can attempt to recreate it at home. 

allium pie at JBGB's

The allium pie at JBGB's, in Remington, has scallion bechamel, cipollini and sweet & sour onions, and garlic oil as well as fontina and mozzarella cheeses on a lovely Neapolitan-style thin crust (dark, blistered, somewhat soggy at the center). I had heard good things about this place and now I wonder why it took us so long to get there.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Langermann's

Langermann's, in the old American Can Company Building, has been a favorite of ours for many years. When we were writing and promoting our first two books, Neal Langermann was a great help to us. While Chef Langermann has moved on to other endeavors, his namesake restaurant carries on with his original concept of offering a refined take on "lowcountry" southern cuisine. The Minx and I were invited back for a chance to sample some of their current menu choices.

We started off with drinks. I had an unusual gin & tonic with a pleasing orange flavor and aroma instead of the usual lime. Other guests in our party enjoyed the southern classic, Pimm's Cup. The Minx opted for a glass of French rosé, which has become her new summer drink of choice.

Our meal began with a quite satisfying amuse of shrimp and grits. The creamy grits--a Georgia heirloom variety, custom ground--were served in a broth of clam juice and white wine and topped with slices of mild andouille sausage in addition to the shrimp.

We also sampled the baby arugula salad and Scotch egg starters. With shaved Parmesan cheese, cherry tomatoes, and a lemon olive oil dressing, the salad was light and refreshing for a hot summer day. The Scotch egg was heartier, with its crisp sausage coating and accompanying sweet sriracha-style sauce and stone-ground mustard.

A perennial favorite at Langermann's, the Low Country Louie adds lobster and shrimp to the traditional crab salad. The Creole mayo dressing makes the salad pleasantly spicy, and the corn kernels provide a bit of texture and sweetness to the dish.

We also sampled the pork belly appetizer, served over more of those delicious grits. The meat was perfectly cooked, with a crispy top layer and melt-in-your-mouth tender pork underneath. While it was lovely on its own, the smoky tomato jam and a sauce made from a reduction of the braising liquids made the dish more special. 

We also sampled a fellow diner's Pork Pops, savory spirals of roast pork and bacon with date and fig jam speared on lollipop sticks and glazed with hot honey. Maybe a bit trendy, but fun to eat and tasty to boot.

For an entree, I had a perfectly cooked piece of pan-roasted Alaskan halibut with a nice crusty top, served on a bed of corn, asparagus, and brown rice. The topping of sweet pickled peaches was unexpected, and the jury is still out on that.

The Minx's seared diver scallops were served in a rather autumnal cider butter sauce over a hash of sweet potato and mushroom. Coupled with the steamy hot weather outside, the dish really made her long for cooler weather. And while it all worked fine with scallops, the accompaniments would have been really perfect for a fat pork chop.

For dessert, the Minx had the rich bread pudding with creme anglaise while I opted for the light and citrussy key lime pie. Both were satisfying endings to a substantial meal.

Despite all of the many new restaurants that have been popping up in Canton recently, Langermann's still seems to be going strong. The spacious dining room was fairly busy that night, and there were several patrons enjoying the bar area as well. Langermann's has outdoor patio seating, too, where one can watch the comings and goings of Cantonites up and down Boston Street--a perfect way to spend a summer evening.

Langermann's
American Can Co, Building
2400 Boston St #101a
Baltimore, MD 21224
410-534-3287



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Minxeats Best of 2011 part 2

In this part two of the Best of 2011, we're taking a look back at the yummy stuff we concocted at home. Sometimes (ok, most of the time), home cookin' is even better than restaurant food!

2011 is the year that theminx lost her fear of baking bread, and back in February, she made a loaf of brioche using the recipe in Artisan Baking in 5 Minutes a Day. She thinks it was the best brioche she's ever eaten, even if it wasn't the prettiest.

The receipt of a couple of soup cookbooks turned Mr Minx into a soup-making fool last winter. The best of the lot was this gorgeous dark pink red sweet and tangy cabbage soup that reminded me a lot of my beloved Grandma's barszcz (Polish beet soup).

Surprisingly tasty was a home made chicken liver paté inspired by the lovely variation we had recently eaten at Clementine.

One of the absolute tastiest and most unusual things theminx concocted all year was this recipe for saffron cupcakes with a curry buttercream frosting. While they didn't win the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Adventure contest, they certainly won hearts.

For the longest time, we didn't "get" chicken and waffles. That is, until we put them together with some maple bacon gravy. Perfection!

We love strawberry shortcake but have often been disappointed with the "shortcake" portion of the program. But then we found the perfect recipe, a variation on a scone, that was both substantial and light. For a more traditional version (preferred by Mr Minx), omit the cornmeal and add 1/2 cup more all-purpose flour.

Any version of Mediterrasian soup (squid, shrimp, etc.) is a big winner in this house, and is ridiculously easy to make. The spicy, garlicky flavors, courtesy of tons of Sriracha, are ones we like to explore over and over again. And it's good all year 'round: the dish is light enough for summer, but spicy enough to warm the body on a cold winter's day.

Last summer, we were rewarded with a plethora of fresh tomatoes from a friend's garden. Among the many things made from them was this tomato tart, which was summer on a crust. And easy, if one uses commercial puff pastry.

We made paella for the very first time in 2011, and it turned out amazingly well. Good thing, since we were serving a small crowd at the time!

We don't eat nearly enough bonafide Korean food, so we like to experiment with Korean flavors at home. We were especially pleased with the way these Korean flank-steak sandwiches turned out.

A recipe from Serious Eats - Merguez Ragout with Poached Eggs - turned out to be simple to make and delicious to eat, not to mention absolutely beautiful, especially when served in our Mikasa Royal Glimmer bowls.

We were really happy with our first attempt at making roast chicken in years. This version was spiced with Sriracha and served with fried rice made with the bird's gizzards 'n' stuff.

And, finally, we made what we think was the absolute best-ever batch of meatballs and red sauce for Christmas dinner. Seriously, amazingly good. But no photos...sorry. :)

Looking forward to cooking up a small storm in 2012! Won't you join us?

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.

Shrimp and Grits

On one recent weekday night without concrete dinner plans, I poked around in the pantry for inspiration. After moving a couple of cans of coconut milk and chopped tomatoes out of the way, I discovered a jar of Robert Rothschild Farm Hot Pepper Berry Patch preserves and a carton of grits. There was also some shrimp in the freezer and leftover cooked bacon in the fridge. Thus armed, and inspired by Top Cheftestant Grayson Schmitz's Polenta with Bacon Wrapped Shrimp & Port Wine Fig Sauce, I thought I'd make my own sweet-and-savory shrimp and grits.

The sauce was pretty sweet, but it played nicely with the very savory grits.

Spicy Raspberry Sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 cup hot pepper berry preserves
2 teaspoons Sriracha
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Combine first six ingredients in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture bubbles and thickens and reduces a bit. Stir in butter. Set aside.

Bacon and Chile Cheese Grits

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
pinch salt
1 4-oz can chopped green chiles
1 clove garlic, minced
3 1/2 cups cold water
3/4 cup old fashioned grits (not instant, not quick)
1/2 cup grated cheese
6 slices cooked bacon, chopped
salt and pepper

Heat olive oil in a 2 quart sauce pan. Add onion and pinch of salt. Cook until onion becomes translucent, then add chiles and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes. Turn up the heat, add water, and bring to a boil. When water is boiling, slowly stir in the grits. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook grits, stirring occasionally, until they thicken, about 20 minutes. Stir in cheese and bacon, add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve both with shrimp sautéed in a bit of garlic butter.

Oh, and the sauce is GREAT on a piece of chocolate cake! (With or without vanilla ice cream.)

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.