Shrimp~n~Cheesy Grits... Griddle Style :)

I love shrimp and grits in the house and over the campfire, I decided to see if I could come up with a way to cook this on the Blackstone.

I made my cheesy grits first, then cooled them, cut em with my biscuit cutter and rolled them in panko...

I had regular ole panko and some whole wheat that I wanted to try...

I made a sauce using butter, liquid crab boil, dijon mustard, garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, Salt and pepper... I think that was all.

Started frying the bacon...

caught some of the bacon drippings for the sauce and let it simmer on the back of the griddle...

added some spicy Conecuh sausage to the griddle...

I love Conecuh sausage. It's not available in my area but I can get it on trips south. The spicy kind is my favorite.

Started some scallions and garlic in the sausage and bacon drippings...

then fried the cheesy grit cakes in the bacon drippings...

added some really nice shrimp I brought home from a trip to Galveston...

I let the grit cakes get crisp on the outside....

Pretty much ready to eat!

Griddle style shrimp n cheesy grits..

I filled my bowl with shrimp and sausage, then drizzled with the sauce, topped with a cheesy grit cake and called er good.

 

It's more of a finger food style shrimp n grits, messy but tasty. I really enjoyed it! The grit cakes were crisp on the outside and creamy/cheesy in the center. The Conecuh sausage added a nice bit of spice and the fresh gulf shrimp were nice. I love shrimp...no matter how it's fixed but this was one of my favorite shrimp cooks.
I'm having fun with this griddle. Didn't know it would come in so handy.

The weekend blizzard didn't turn out as bad as expected. I guess it was best to be ready for the worse and not need the extra precautions.
Hope everyone stayed safe and had a great weekend.
Thanks for stopping by!

Forgot to mention. I liked the regular ole panko breadcrumbs better than the whole wheat. :)

Albondigas (Meatball Soup) for the Winter

I have turned into the Progresso Soup Lady. :/
In the fall, I usually buy a few cans of soup to keep in my cellar for quick, hot meals.
 Last winter, I opened a can of Progresso chicken and rice soup from my stash,  poured it into a pan to heat. Sitting on top of the soup was a large black object. Upon further inspection I realized the black object was the back half of a beetle bug. No head, just the black shell and a few legs. :/
I tossed the soup and did a quick google search. Seems like it's a fairly common thing in canned soups. lol

Long story short, I've been canning a lot of home made soups the last couple of months. They taste SO much better than store bought and I can control the addition of critters in the pot. :)


This one is Mexican Meatball Soup. Albondigas...
The recipe is loosely based on a recipe by cooking friend Mrs Crane.

I mixed one can of El Pato tomato sauce with 4 quarts of water....
the tomato sauce is spicy. I tripled the recipe for canning. Used 3 cans of sauce and 12 quarts of water.

I added cubed potatoes... Just eyeballed how many I wanted in the pot. Probably 3 cups.

and cubed carrots...

and about one cup of chopped celery...

seasoned the pot with salt and pepper to taste...

made the meatballs...
one pound of burger
3/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/2  cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped tomato
about 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 TBs dried oregano
1/2 cup of white rice
1 egg
(I tripled this for canning)

I added the meatballs to the simmering veggies and broth...skimmed off the foam as the meatballs cooked. The veggies don't need to be tender. I just check the meatballs and can them when almost cooked through.

I used pint jars. Makes one good meal for me.
Added 4 meatballs to each jar, then tried to divide the veggies evenly into each jar so I would have a good serving but still have enough broth in the jar to make it "soup". Just eyeballed it.

filled the hot sterilized jars, wiped the rims before topping with the warm lids...

into the pressure canner for 75 minutes at 12lbs of pressure. (check your pressure canner book for times and pounds in your area, they are not all the same)

The cooling jars...
I ended up making chicken soup too.

Albondigas soup usually includes rice in the both, but rice does not can well. I add a bit of rice to the soup while heating it up to eat. Works just fine.

The soup has been coming in handy. No way it's going to last me all winter, I seem to be going through it fast!
I made chicken soup using the same broth and veggies, just added cubed chicken breasts to the pot and it turned out well too.

Sounds like I have a chance for snow tomorrow. The livestock are fed, The chicken coop is ready with extra straw bales and grain. I'm still enjoying the Christmas eve gumbo and Christmas ham.
Guess I'm ready!

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas. Keep warm and safe! :)