Shrimp and Grits

You know how you throw out or give away all the food in your fridge before you go on vacation? Yea, well it's a necessary evil of making sure you don't come home to a stinky house.  The problem with that, is it leaves you with no food when you come home from vacation and you're tired. And you have to unpack. And need to do 5 loads of laundry.

Going grocery shopping is one of the last things on my mind when I come home from a trip.

So I usually have a few things stocked in my pantry or freezer that I would consider 'staples'.  This is also helpful for if you have a baby and don't have time or the effort to have perishables.  And hate food waste.  I usually have some oatmeal and/or grits in the pantry for breakfast.  And I usually have some kind of seafood, ground beef, and chicken thighs or breasts in my freezer.  And I usually keep some parmesan cheese in my freezer.  So I happened to have some frozen shrimp in the freezer when we came home from our trip to Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Hence....shrimp and grits for dinner!

Now, I did cheat and used some cherry tomatoes in my fridge that were a little bit less-than-fresh.  And green onions from my backyard garden (the only thing besides rosemary that had survived my year of gardening neglect).  So this meal is not entirely from the pantry/freezer.

Shrimp and Grits
2 portions, approximately 20-30 minute cooking and prep time
Ingredients:

• stove-top grits for 2 servings
• 1 c. grated parmesan cheese
• 1.5 tbs. butter
• 1 tbs. olive oil
• 1/2 c. cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 lb. peeled and deveined shrimp
• salt and pepper
• 1 green onion,sliced

Directions:

1. Prepare grits according to directions for 2 servings, stove-top.
2. Remove from heat.  Fold in parmesan cheese and cover with lid to retain warmth.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat.  Melt butter and oil until browned, about 1 minute.
4. Saute garlic and tomatoes until tomatoes blister about 2-3 minutes
5. Add shrimp and cook for about 2 minutes per side, or until cooked through and starting to curl. Season with salt and pepper
6. Plate grits and add shrimp and tomatoes.  Pour sauce over shrimp and grits.
7. Garnish with green onions