Spicy Shrimp & Grits

I took the March issue of Cooking Light to the hospital on Thursday & quickly flagged this recipe to try ASAP.

Spicy Shrimp & Grits

4 servings

3 cups 1% lowfat milk

1 cup water

1 tbsp butter

1/2 tsp salt, divided

1/4 tsp black pepper, divided

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits

1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

4 slices applewood-smoked bacon

1 lb peeled, deveined large shrimp

1 cup thinly vertically sliced white onion

2 cups grape tomatoes, halved

1 chopped chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce

1/8 tsp ground or crushed red pepper

1/4 cup green onion strips

1 tsp Tabasco

1. Combine milk, water, butter, 1/4 tsp salt, & 1/4 tsp black pepper in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer; gradually add grits, stirring constantly with a whisk. Reduce heat to medium; cook 4 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in cheese.

2. While grits cook, cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 tsp drippings, crumble bacon. Add shrimp to drippings in pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove shrimp from pan. Add white onion to pan; saute 1 minute. Stir in bacon, tomatoes, remaining 1/4 tsp salt, & remaining 1/8 tsp black pepper; saute 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add shrimp, chipotle chile, Tabasco; cook 1 minute or until shrimp are heated. Serve over grits; sprinkle with green onions.

Kim's Notes: For the shrimp, we buy the $5.99 bag of large shrimp from Trader Joe's. Also, I never use "fresh" cheese because I don't grate. I used a Sargento parmesan reggiano blend. This recipe was really good, especially the grits. Next time I'll use less grape tomatoes & less green onions. It was just too much, not bad, but too much. Also, for a recipe called "spicy", it wasn't that spicy. I may add more fire next time. The recipe recommends trying fresh chile peppers. I may add a little garlic, too. Lastly, this was surprisingly quick to make. I think it took us 20-30 minutes total. Definitely recommend this recipe.