Olde Thyme Grit Cakes With Wild Mushrooms |
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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 30 Minutes |
Ready In: 30 Minutes Servings: 6 |
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If you ever find yourself on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, NC...swing by Top of the Hill. I draw my inspiration for this dish on a pretty similar one I had there a few years ago during the college-era. They also have their own micro-brewery and you can get a great assortment of crafted, local beers. Read more . Their IPA is actually pretty damn super with this. Enjoy! *Prep time includes overnight chilling. Actually throwing it all together takes no time at all.* Ingredients:
grit cakes |
2 cups stone ground grits |
4 cups water |
1 cup whole milk |
4-5 sprigs fresh thyme |
2 tablespoons unsalted butter |
salt to taste |
canola oil |
wild mushroom gravy |
1.5-2 oz dried wild mushrooms (porcini, shiitaki, portabella, morel, crimini, whatever you can find/like or a mix of several) |
1.5 cups chicken, vegetable, or mushroom stock |
1-1.5 cup reserved mushroom liquid |
1/2 cup white wine |
1 clove garlic, minced |
1 small shallot, minced |
1-2 tbsp unsalted butter |
1-2 tbsp flour (for roux) |
salt and pepper to taste |
hot water |
1 extra tbsp butter |
chopped thyme |
shaved parmesan |
Directions:
1. Prepare grits according to package directions. When you first begin heating your liquid for the grits, toss in the sprigs of fresh thyme. After about 20 minutes, the leaves should fall right off the stem as you pull them out.
2. The grits should be slightly thicker than mashed potatoes and super creamy. Stone ground grits do take a while, but they are the only grits for me!
3. Butter a casserole dish (13x9) and carefully pour finished grits in. Allow to cool to room temperature, cover, and place in refrigerator overnight. These may stay in the fridge up to two days.
4. When ready to prepare grit cakes, bring them out and cut them into 8-10 squares.
5. In a heavy skillet, heat about half an inch of canola oil to almost smoking. Carefully place grit squares into oil and fry until golden brown and hot through. Do not try to flip them until they are released from the pan to prevent tearing and falling apart.
6. Serve with wild mushroom gravy and garnish with chopped thyme and shaved parmesan curls.
7. *****************************************
8. Begin with rehydrating your mushrooms by placing them in a large bowl and covering them with hot water. This process takes about an hour, and you might need to occasionally add more hot water as they absorb the liquid. Keep them covered with water.
9. Meanwhile, mince your garlic and shallot and sauté them in butter in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the garlic and shallot are as dark as you’d like them, sprinkle in your flour to mix a roux.
10. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook the roux to a golden brown color
11. Begin whisking in the stock and wine, breaking up and distributing the roux through the fluid. Add the mushrooms and 1-1.5 cups of the mushroom water to the gravy, depending on how thick you want the sauce. Salt and pepper to taste.
12. Simmer over low-medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until desired thickness is reached. When ready to serve, mix in the last tbsp of butter to give a nice glossy shine. Spoon over hot grit cakes and garnish with chopped thyme and parmesan curls.
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