West Coast Grits

You may be wondering what the bloody hell I think I'm doing, going up on YouTube like this. It's a grand experiment. An experiment to find out a) whether video additions to blog posts make any sort of useful contribution; b) whether it's worth the extra trouble; and c) how much can I possibly detract from my content with my grating personality? You decide.

Except that ultimately, I decide.

Phase 1 of this experiment has shown me that I talk funny, have extremely beefy arms, and a really wicked farmer's tan (which, by the way, is not entirely my fault; it's a product of the Arizona desert sun, the fact that I spent the whole month of August under it raking hoofstock poop, and the t-shirts supplied to us by the zoo). I think it might work.

Anyway, grits. I love 'em. Nobody else I know eats them (or has even tried them, for all I know). What I call "grits" could also be considered polenta. Actually, I prepare polenta in the style of grits, if that makes sense. Polenta and grits are technically the same product, only grits are made with corn treated with lye (aka "hominy"), and polenta is just plain corn. It's basically a very coarse cornmeal. I like Bob's Red Mill brand.

Why call them "west coast" grits? Because people on the west coast like untreated food (no lye) and vegetables more than they like purified fat and starch. And people on the west coast generally don't eat traditional grits. I guess there's not a lot of creativity that went into that name.

Just an FYI. Upon re-evaluating my food budget this last month, I have come to the realization that I am spending about three times more on groceries since I moved down to Arizona. Granted, there were two-three days per week that someone else was buying my food back in Washington, but that's not even half a week. Three times more money is insanity. So I've reduced my budget (again), which means just one thing, people. I'm going to have to get creative with cheap food. Be prepared for a lot of variations on... well, rice, and beans. And cornmeal. Ideas are welcome.

(By the way, did you know that a dozen large organic eggs are like, $5-6 here? They're $3.50 in Washington. Anyone in the Phoenix area have chickens that produce more eggs than you can use? I'll pay you $3.50 a dozen for them.)


WEST COAST GRITS

3/4 - 1 cup water
1/8 - 1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup frozen chopped spinach
1/4 cup frozen corn kernels and/or frozen peas
1/4 cup grits or polenta (not pre-prepared. the stuff that looks like coarse cornmeal)
1 large egg
Freshly ground black pepper
Lime crème fraîche (optional)

1. Put the water in a pan, with the salt, over high heat, and cover to bring to a simmer. I know, this is difficult.

When the water simmers, you can turn down the heat to medium-low or low, and add the vegetables. Wait for it to simmer again, if it stops (because frozen vegetables are cold, believe it or not), then add the grits and stir.





2. Stir it every few minutes for about 5-7 minutes, until the grits swell up and take up a lot of space in the pan, and you don't see much water. If you don't stir it, the water comes up to the top and the rest of the stuff in the pan sticks to the bottom.



When most of the water is absorbed, you can add the egg. You don't have to pre-beat it, just crack it into the pan and stir it around. When you see the gelatinous clear part (the "white" of the egg) make lots of white streaks in the grits, and it takes on a smoother, more creamy consistency, it's probably ready! It depends on the amount of heat you have on it. Add your pepper, and you're done.



Unless you have lime crème fraîche to drizzle on the top. That makes it even better. A stroke of genius, that was.

So, I'm undecided on the video. It is a little unnecessary, right? I suppose this might not be the best recipe on which to try the video, as there is no real "technique" to show. I mean, boil water and put stuff in a pan and stir it. There's really nothing easier. Opinions are welcome...

Oh, and this is super cheap, super easy eats. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner. One of my fallbacks when I can't decide what to make, or if I hardly have anything to fix. I always have some grits around (I keep grits in a jar in the freezer, so they don't spoil). You can make it with cheese instead of eggs, but it has fewer nutrients and more fat, so... depends on what you're looking for.


Aaand.... discuss.