Fresh Homegrown Grits For Nearly Any Diet (Gluten Free, Organic, Vegan)

Call it what you will - cornmeal mush, polenta, or good old Southern grits - this humble little meal deserves its props.

Last summer, I chanced upon a bag of home-grown, non-GMO, home-ground, heritage cornmeal for an insanely good price sitting next to the register at a local greenhouse. I bought one bag. Of course, had I know how yummy it would be, I'd have bought a lot more.

Good coarsely ground heritage corn has a complex, nutty flavor you'll never find in a box of instant Quaker grits. They are truly two different foods; it's starkly obvious how blank processed food becomes when you compare real corn vs. fake agribusiness corn.

Last night, I cooked up a simple meal of fresh grits, Trader Joe's no-nitrate apple chicken sausage links, and french-style green beans, served with homemade yogurt and chunks of mango. The grits made the meal, and we've been enjoying them for breakfast again today.

I know home-grown local corn can be harder to find outside a rural area, particularly in the winter when Farmer's Markets are quiet, but there are a couple brands on Amazon I'd recommend. Bob's Red Mill organic cornmeal is a larger, well-known producer with low prices and large availability. Palmetto Farms is a smaller producer whose corn can offer a more unique flavor than the larger producers can.

Here's our recipe for grits.

Ingredients

8 cups water
2 cups cornmeal
salt to taste

Dinner is Upon Me and I'm Unprepared Directions (takes about 20-25 minutes until ready to eat)

Combine cold water and the cornmeal in a pan on the stove top; stir until smooth.
Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently until the mixture begins to boil.
Add a little salt. Cool a spoonful and taste. Repeat until it's salted how you like it.
Turn the heat to low and allow it to simmer until it thickens to the consistency you want. It will get thicker the longer it cooks.

I'm Actually Thinking Ahead This Morning Directions (Slow Cooker - 5 minutes of hands-on time, but takes 6-8 hours until ready to eat)

Combine warm water and the cornmeal in the slow cooker crock; stir until smooth.
Turn slow cooker on high for 1 hour, then stir. Add a little salt. Taste and repeat until it's salted how you like it.
Turn the slow cooker to low and cook for another 6-8 hours or until it's the consistency you want. It will get thicker the longer it cooks.

Some people like their grits salty (that's us!) but others swear by sweet (maybe with real maple syrup if you're into that sweet grits thing). We added a big old fat pat of butter on each bowl of grits and a little extra salt at the table. Yum!

And because this dinner was so affordable, I'm going to lay out my prices for a change. These were my prices for my family of four.

Grits - 1/10th of the $5 bag of cornmeal so 50 cents.
Butter - 1/8th of a $3 pound so 48 cents. (Homemade from skimmed cream was about the same price for me.)
Chicken sausages - all of a $5 pack, so $5.00
Green beans - all of a 80 cent scratch & dent can, so 80 cents.
Yogurt - 1/10 of a $5 gallon of milk plus a $1 yogurt starter pack, so 70 cents.
Maple syrup to sweeten the yogurt - 1/20 of a $7 bottle so 35 cents.
Two mangoes - 50 cents each at produce discount so $1.

Total meal cost for family of four (with grits left over for breakfast): $8.83 or $2.21 per person.

Not too shabby, although as you can see, the chicken sausages comprised the bulk of the cost. We had bought them as a treat a few nights ago, but normally we would have had eggs with this dinner. Our eggs are free right now - I haven't bought feed in months but we're still getting eggs daily from our free rangers (with a little feed added in that a neighbor gifted us).

Free eggs would have brought my cost down to $3.83 for the family or 96 cents per person! It's hard to believe we can have an enjoyable, filling, well-rounded dinner for under $1.00 each, especially with all my exacting food requirements. But there it is - the humble grits. A good choice for local foodies, organic connoisseurs, frugalites, and gluten-free folks alike. Or anyone who likes to eat good real food.

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Egg Rolls

Wow, time flies. My last post was in March? What happened? Well...pregnancy, that's what. As much as I wanted nutritious supper in 10 minutes or less hands-on time, my stomach wasn't feeling very creative.

But, here's a new one thanks to a wonderful homeschooling mom friend who also happens to facilitate the delivery of our real milk lifeline each week.

INGREDIENTS

• Egg Roll Wrappers (found in the refrigerated produce section in our Kroger)
• Bag pre-chopped cole slaw, fresh
• Additions, such as:
fresh mushrooms
purple cabbage
onions
green onions
chopped chicken
• Garlic, ginger, salt & pepper, to taste
• Oil for frying
• Sauce for dipping (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Gently saute over low heat cole slaw, additions (I get my additions from the salad bar at our Kroger for super-fast, dump-it-in-the-pan preparation) & spices in a little oil. When vegetables begin to soften (after 4-5 minutes), turn off heat, cover & let sit until ready to wrap. Veggies will continue to soften as they sit covered. (2 minutes hands-on)

Pour a generous amount of oil in a frying pan & turn on medium heat. Wrap 2-3 Tbls. of vegetable mixture in each egg roll wrapper, seal, & place in hot oil. See back of egg roll wrapper package for instructions on how to fold the wrapper. (Be sure to moisten the last flap you fold to attach the rolls together.) Flip egg rolls when they are brown & crispy on one side; fry the other side until brown & crispy. In medium-hot oil, each side will take 3-4 minutes. (7 minutes)

Put on a plate, sprinkles with salt & serve with a dipping sauce, if desired.

Caroline has told me that her mom used to serve these when she was growing up. They were never part of grandma's dinner repertoire, so I am loving them! We needed something different. Plus, I've always loved egg rolls but will never allow myself to eat them in the Chinese restaurant because of the MSG content.

Yum!

Optional Ginger Peanut Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup raisins, soaked in 1 cup hot water for 15 minutes or more
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 clove raw garlic
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. mustard
1/4 tsp. salt

Drain raisins after soaking but reserve soak water. Add 1/4 cup soak water to all other ingredients (including raisins) in a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth. Add more of the soak water if needed to achieve desired consistency.

Beef Stroganoff

A beef recipe? From me? Yep! I was lucky enough to pick up some grass-fed, grass-finished, free-range local beef last week & I've been thoroughly enjoying it. Check out this super-quick & super-easy stroganoff recipe:

Ingredients

Cooked beef (I cooked mine by dumping the plain steaks in the crockpot set on low for nine hours. 2 minutes hands-on)
Juice from the cooked beef, or canned beef broth
Flour to thicken
Buttermilk or sour cream or plain yogurt + salt for flavor
Egg noodles

Instructions

Put on egg noodles to boil until tender. (2 minutes)

Put juice and a little buttermilk or sour cream in a saucepan set on high & quickly stir in flour, a TBLS. at a time, until it boils & thickens to your liking. You want just enough buttermilk or sour cream to lighten the broth to a medium brown color -- no more. (5 minutes)

Stir in cooked beef & heat through. (1 minute)

Serve mixture over cooked egg noodles. (1 minute)

wraps!

Wraps are so versatile, it's amazingly easy to whip up a breakfast, lunch or dinner that will look luxurious to your friends, but takes less than 10 minutes to make.

Ingredients
Whole wheat or white flour tortillas (1-2 per person)
Fillings (see below)

Filling Suggestions
avocado, lettuce, tomatoes, bleu cheese dressing
sharp cheddar cheese, tomatillos, lettuce, onion, honey mustard dressing
provolone cheese, chopped turkey, gravy, onion, hot sauce
chicken salad, dried cranberries, chopped grapes, yogurt
tuna salad, pineapple, drizzle of honey
cream cheese and sliced peaches, kiwi, or mangoes
colby cheese, eggs & meat or meat substitute
peanut butter, banana, granola & drizzle of honey

Directions
If any ingredients are spreadable, spread evenly across each tortilla. (4 minutes hands-on prep)
Add remaining ingredients and roll tightly. (3 minutes hands-on prep)
Stick toothpick in center of each wrap. (1 minute hands-on prep)

Serving suggestions
Serve with side of chips, veggies, salad, or soup. Try serving bento-style for a fun variation. If using toothpicks in the center to hold together, teach kids to eat toward the toothpick from one side, turn around & eat from the other side & finish with the bite between the toothpick.