Possible Allergy warning – please read all recipes carefully
and be aware of any allergies or sensitivities that may affect your health and well-being

******************************

Please Fave the original Here

Once again a superb dish from !

******************************

Inspired by the Ruby Tuesday dish, "Low Country Shrimp & Grits." Vrghr was lucky enough to encounter this new menu item while waiting at the Orlando airport. It was a fantastic meal, well worth the cash wuffy spent on it. And Vrghr swore then, that wuff would try to 'copy cat' this delicious creation at home.

The Ruby Tuesday version consists of tender jumbo shrimp and andouille sausage, bacon, mushrooms, and peppers served over six cheese grits with a Parmesan cream sauce.

Wuff's version goes to 7 cheeses in the grits (but wuffy would leave out the Mozzarella next time - makes eating "adventurous" with all the strings!). A hearty collection of shrimp, Andouille sausage, BACON, crimini (chestnut or Baby Bella) mushrooms, red and orange bell peppers, onions, and garlic in a lightly creamed, white wine and slightly buttery broth. And a nice, rich Parmesan, Asiago, black pepper cream sauce over top.

The grits also gain extra flavor through the use of chicken stock, half n half, and cream instead of water, and butter to finish with the cheeses.

This was a VERY rich, very satisfying dish! Hugely packed with flavor! Lovely "Kick" from the spicy Andouille sausage, deep savory notes from the bacon, earthy foundation from the mushrooms, and a nice complex set of aromatics from the peppers, onions, and garlic. The combination of goodies was very Creole in its flavors, and would easily stand alone as a lovely dish, perhaps over some nice lightly tarragon rice.

The Parmesan/Asiago and Pepper Cream sauce is decadently rich, thick, and luscious! It too would stand alone well as a sauce over a robust fish, pork, or hearty veggies. Wuff would love to try it over asparagus or artichoke hearts!

And those Grits! Oh MY! These could ruin you from EVER ordering restaurant grits again - at least from any chain store that uses instant grits you can't tell from Farina! Vrghr could make a meal out of these alone! Creamy, tender, corn flavors immersed in rich, complex cheese, so thick they will almost stand up a spoon from all the cheese. But still soft and creamy in texture. Wuff used a Stone Ground version of grits that takes a bit longer to cook those 5-minute "Quaker Quick Cooking" version, but rewards you with even better flavors and textures.

This still isn't exactly a match for the Ruby Tuesday version. (To wuff's taste buds, it's even better!) So Vrghr will probably work at tweaking this around a bit more. But in its current state, it is a fantastic dish of tasty comfort! And it doesn't take a lot of skill and effort to prepare!

All the techniques are pretty basic. If you can make stove-top oatmeal, you have what it takes to create the grits. The cream sauce is even easier than a basic white sauce to prepare. And the Bacon, Andouille, and Shrimp mixture just needs basic Saute skill.

But bringing this all together at once will make guests think you've been moonlighting as a New Orleans cook somewhere. *GRIN* Don't be afraid to spring this one on them next time you want to try something rather different.

Note: By no means is this "low cal"! It is so rich, filling and satisfying that even a VERY hungry Vrghr couldn't finish the bowl pictured above. The recipe below will likely make 6-8 servings, depending on appetites!

Ingredients:

For the Grits:

1 C Grits
2 C Chicken Stock/Broth
1.5 C Milk or Half n Half
1/2 C Heavy Cream
4 TBS Butter + another 3 TBS
1/2 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2.5 C Cheese mixture (see below)

The 7-Cheeses:(equal parts each, to make about 2.5 C)
White Cheddar
Sharp Cheddar
Jack
Asiago (grated)
Parmesan (grated)
Mozzerella
Havarti

For the Bacon, Andouille, and Shrimp:

1 lb frozen Jumbo Shrimp (about 26 count), peeled & de-veined
2 links spicy Andouille Sausage, sliced into coins
6 strips applewood smoked Bacon, chopped
8 oz Crimini Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 each Red & Yellow Bell Peppers. diced
1 med Onion (or = amount shallots), diced
2 TBS Minced Garlic
2 TBS Butter
1 TBS Olive Oil
2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
2 tsp Smoked Paprika
1/2 C White Wine
1/3 C Heavy Cream

For the Asiago/Parmesan Pepper Cream Sauce:

1 C Heavy Cream
1 C Half n Half
1/2 C Chicken Stock
1/3 C White Wine
1.C fresh grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 C fresh grated Asiago Cheese
1/3 C Cream Cheese
1 TBS freshly ground Black Pepper

Directions:

For the Grits:

The ratio is about 4 cups liquid to 1 heaping cup stone-ground grits. But start a wee bit lighter on the liquid, and add more chicken stock/broth if it seems too thick/dry. It's a lot easier to thin these, than to thicken if they stay too thin.
Add 4 TBS butter, chicken broth/stock, half n half, and seasonings to a heavy medium sauce pan. Bring to boil. Whisk in the grits slowly in a steady stream, whisking as you pour them in (prevents lumps). Continue to whisk about a minute afterward to make sure everything stays creamy and lump-free.
Lower temperature to medium-low, just enough to keep grits on a very light simmer. Cover, and cook for ~12-15 minutes, stirring every 4-5 minutes or so, to keep from scorching the bottom and to make sure everything stays incorporated.
Add cheese and whisk in. Reduce heat to low and allow to continue cooking, covered, for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, for the cheese to melt and the flavors to meld.
Add heavy cream, whisk, cover, and cook another 3-5 minutes. If grits look too thick or dry for your taste, thin with additional chicken broth/stock, whisking in thoroughly.
Add the remaining butter, Reduce heat to warm, to hold (try to get everything to finish together though)

For the Bacon, Andouille & Shrimp:

(Depending on your speed in sauteing, you should start this about 5 minutes after you whisk the grits into their liquid. If you get done a bit early, it will hold until the grits are ready, but make sure you keep the temperature on the lowest setting so the shrimp don't over-cook)
Chop bacon, slice sausage into 1/4″ disks, peal & de-vein shrimp (if using fresh)
Add 1 TBS olive oil to a large, heavy fry pan or work. Fry Andouille until crisp around the edges. Remove sausage to plate with a couple layers of paper towels, to drain.
NOTE: The guests served didn't want this too spicy, so the spicy fat from the Andouille was discarded. You can save it and mix in some with the bacon fat if you like a bit more "kick".
Drain off the fat.
Add the bacon to the pan, and fry bacon until almost crisp. Remove to plate w/paper towels to drain, retaining fat.
Add the butter and mix with the bacon fat. Saute bell peppers, onions, and garlic in the combination until tender and fragrant (onions are translucent).
Add the sliced mushrooms and continue to saute until the mushrooms give up their moisture and start to turn tender and dark.
Add white wine, paprika, and old bay seasoning and cook for a couple minutes to reduce and concentrate some of the wine flavors
Add the shrimp and cook until shrimp are opaque and wine is reduced. DON'T OVER-COOK the Shrimp!
Reserve a bit of the bacon and a few coins of sausage as garnish
Return the remainder bacon and sausage to pan, add cream, and stir everything together. Let cook together for a minute or two for the flavors to partly incorporate (you still want to taste the individual shrimp, bacon and Andouille though)
If holding, lower heat to lowest setting

For the Asiago/Parmesan Pepper Cream Sauce:

(You can start this while the liquids for the grits are coming to their first boil. Then let this work and reduce as everything else cooks. When it has reached the right thickness, set the heat to the lowest setting and it will hold nicely until everything else is ready. Just give it a quick whisk before adding to the plate)
Add half n half, cream, wine, stock/broth, and ground Black Pepper to a small sauce pan. Bring to a light boil and reduced by about 1/4 to 1/3
Add cream Cheese, Parmesan, and Asiago cheeses. Whisk in until melted
Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 8-10 minutes.
Cover, and reduce heat to keep warm

To Plate:

Give the grits a whisk, and ladle a heaping cup into the bottom of a bowl
Cover with a layer of the Bacon, Andouille, and Shrimp. Scoop up a Tablespoon or so of the broth in the bottom of that pan and drizzle that on
Whisk the Cream Sauce and pour a little of that over the top of the Shrimp mixture
Garnish with a couple sausage 'coins' and some crumbled bacon, and perhaps a dash of paprika

!DEVOUR!