Take Out Fake Out

Pretend this is a twitter update: Aunt Debra's Pickled Eggs Are So Good.

Blog:

So victory came in two forms this weekend. On Friday night we overcame the urge to get take-out and on Saturday night we overcame the urge to get take-out. I don't think that one's goal should always be to fight these cravings, but the meals that resulted from the decision to hold back and head back to the kitchen proved to be worthwhile.

Friday night we took our leftover turkey chili, added some chopped broccoli, ricotta and mozzarella cheese and made calzones. I worried that they would taste like chili wrapped in pizza dough, which is exactly what it was, but the transformation was successful. Amidst the dough and cheeses the chili lost its distinctive flavor -in the best way possible. And the broccoli was saved from a life ending in the refrigerator.

Saturday night instead of making a sudden, sharp right-hand turn into a strip mall with an ambiguous Chinese restaurant in it, we made shrimp and grits. The recipe came from the Month Of May Everyday Food magazine, although there are lots of ways to make it, of course. This is an easy and tasty version with broiled tomatoes on the side.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend.

Here is our edited version of the recipe for the Shrimp with Grits:

1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned grits
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
4 teaspoons of flour
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup light cream
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
Broiled Tomatoes

1. Cook the grits according to the package instructions
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic and scallion whites and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in flour. Whisk in broth and cream, dissolving lumps from flour and scraping up browned bits from skillet, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add shrimp and cook, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes. To serve, top grits with shrimp mixture and sprinkle with scallion greens. Serve with tomatoes, if desired. We desired.

Broiled Tomatoes
Place 4 halved tomatoes, cut side up on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Broil until lightly charred.