Be my Guest with House of Brinson – Shrimp and Grits

By Giulia Doyle
Shrimp and Grits - Audrey''s and House of Brinson

Photo on left: Giulia Doyle, Photo on right: William Brinson

I’m super giddy to share this post with you today! It’s a new regular feature, and I am ecstatic that House of Brinson joined me to kick-off this series. In this new feature, called ‘Be my Guest’ I invite photographers and food bloggers to join me on the blog. Every six weeks the ‘guest’ will choose the recipe and both of us will cook and photograph it. Both of us will probably have a slightly different take on the food and our images will be different. I’m running this series to challenge me to try new recipes and to improve my photography and styling skills.

I was so pleased when Susan and William agreed to join me. I admire their work immensely, and once they agreed I started to freak out. William and Susan are pros, this is what they do for a living. William has had his photographs featured in national magazines – what the heck was I thinking? But I did it! I decided to plow on through – I wrote down the type of image I was going for, the props I was going to use and then I made sure to photograph it before I got William’s photo – I didn’t want to be influenced by their take on things.

Shrimp and Grits - Audrey's and House of Brinson

Photo on left: Giulia Doyle, Photo on right: William Brinson

Susan and William chose a great Shrimp and Grits recipe – something William says he often ate in his Southern home. I had never made it, so I was excited to try something different. It’s a great recipe. It’s flavourful, pretty simple to make and very filling. You can see adjustments we both made on it in the notes section below.

This collaboration has been a great experience and I already learned some key things from William critiquing my photo. It’s taking me outside of my comfort zone and pushing me to new levels – there’s always so much to learn. I hope you enjoy this regular feature. My next guest is all lined-up to cook with me in a couple of weeks!

* This feature is inspired by Liz and Jewels. Original Recipe: Tyler Florence for the FoodNetwork

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Shrimp and Grits with House of Brinson - adapted from Tyler Florence for the FoodNetwork

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 4-8 servings

Ingredients

  • Grits:
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 cup stone-ground white cornmeal
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Shrimp:
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium white onion, minced
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 pound spicy sausage, cut in chunks
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 green onion, white and green part, chopped

Instructions

  1. To make the grits, place a 3-quart pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Slowly whisk in the cornmeal.
  2. When the grits begin to bubble, turn the heat down to medium low and simmer, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon. Allow to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and thick. Remove from heat and stir in the cream and butter, season with salt and pepper.
  3. To make the shrimp, place a deep skillet over medium heat and coat with the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic; saute for 2 minutes to soften. Add the sausage and cook, stirring, until there is a fair amount of fat in the pan and the sausage is brown. Sprinkle in the flour and stir with a wooden spoon to create a roux. Slowly pour in the chicken stock and continue to stir to avoid lumps. Toss in the bay leaf. When the liquid comes to a simmer, add the shrimp. Poach the shrimp in the stock for 2 to 3 minutes, until they are firm and pink and the gravy is smooth and thick.
  4. Season with salt and pepper; stir in the parsley and green onion. Spoon the grits into a serving bowl. Add the shrimp mixture and mix well. Serve immediately.

Notes

Both Susan and I added one cup of additional liquid to the grits, since it seized up rapidly. Susan replaced the heavy cream with coconut milk.

I had to replace the white cornmeal with yellow cornmeal and I added mild sausage instead of the spicy sausage.

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Audrey's Shrimp and Grits

 

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