Working Stiff

Guess what? I have returned to work. I loved being retired and I look forward to re-retiring in a few weeks, but I couldn't resist being invited back to fill in for a couple of colleagues who are out of the office for personal reasons.

I now can boast banker's hours (10am-3pm), short weeks (Mon-Thurs only) and a nice little salary for doing what I would have happily done for free. See what I mean about being so amazingly lucky?

And, as if that wasn't enough practically my first day back in the Civic Center, I was introduced to a new-to-me restaurant in that neck of the woods, Brenda's French Soul Food on Polk Street. This place, for all it is teeny-tiny and incredibly noisy and has long lines at lunch time, is a wonderful cut above any other restaurant within easy walking distance of my work. The menu is N'awlins Creole-French - beignets are on all menus - and delightfully different.

On my first visit, I chose - yes, again! - shrimp and grits, figuring this would make a fun comparison with those I had tried in the South last fall. This dish was quite different, with almost-smooth white grits covered in melted cheddar cheese and colorfully presented next to a very generous portion of sweet shrimp in a mildly spicy roux topped with a tickle of green onion.

I also had a sip of their watermelon iced tea (very fresh and tasty), a bite of an apple beignet (a perfect breakfast for next time) and their signature savory crawfish beignet (an interesting twist with eye-opening heat) - I will be back for more!

Don't go there if you are short on time - I literally had 10 minutes to eat in my lunch hour due to the wait - but if you have time to wait a bit for a table, I can highly recommend both returning briefly to work and eating at Brenda's.

Shrimp and Grits, Take One

Rats, shoulda gone with my gut.

When I read the recipe for Shrimp and Grits, I somehow knew there should be more to making the rich, darkly flavored dish I enjoyed in North Carolina than this recipe outlined. I mostly followed the recipe, however, instead of experimenting a bit.

I did make a few changes - subbed shrimp stock that I had in the freezer for the water in the recipe and added a bit more of the chopped tomatoes - but I was mostly a good little girl.

Phooey.

I never thought I'd say this as I love buttery, rich foods, but the whole dish is 'way too rich when you put shrimp and sauce made with lots of butter and heavy cream over cheesy grits. Oink! It was all so rich that we could barely taste the shrimp as separate from the creamy sauce - and there was plenty of shrimp in there! If I was to make this again, I'd serve it over rice rather than cheesy grits, and probably a chewy brown rice to add texture to the dish. I had added fresh corn to my cheesy grits of the night before and, although I love it as a side dish, it was wasted under all that creamy stuff.

So, what changes? I did like the hint of heat from the sriracha sauce and the jalapeños, so I'd keep that but I'd increase the chopped tomatoes by half again to raise the acid a little and I'd omit the cream altogether, subbing in more of the shrimp stock. I'd probably try adding some paprika, too, to darken both the sauce and the flavor. I might add some lemon juice or zest, too, for additional zing. What I dream of would be lighter and leaner, with a sauce that contrasted more with the sweetness of the shrimp, a sauce that would lighten the cheesy grits rather than weigh them down with even more richness.

Next time, I'm going with my instincts!

Southern Tradition

At a vastly more upscale restaurant, Bistro in Greensboro, North Carolina, I was introduced to a low country tradition, shrimp and grits. It was nearly enough, all by itself, to have me thinking about spending part of the year in the South.

The closest recipe I can find on epicurious.com is this one, but I know there was more to it than this. The Bistro version of shrimp and grits paired mildly spicy, tomato-based sauce and sweet shrimp with richly cheesy grits with fresh corn mixed in. There were fresh herbs in the grits as well and the red sauce was deeply flavored, as if it had been cooked for a long time or started with a special stock, even though the shrimp were not over done. The fresh corn gave a lightness and a sweetness to the grits, which were themselves more textured than what I think of as the plain white, grainy "breakfast grits."

I bought a bag of water mill stone ground white grits to bring home in my suitcase - they seem to have the coarser texture I enjoyed in the shrimp and grits dish. I have some 'sperimenting to do in the next few weeks to come up with a dish as delish as the one at Bistro.