Grits with Corn and Vidalia Onion

Comfort food at its best - who knew grits could be so good? I certainly didn't, but then again, I've never had grits before. (Unless you're one of those folks who call grits "polenta" and polenta "grits", in which case, I have had polenta before.) I think this is one of those dishes I'd be perfectly happy eating on its own, but with the andouille sausage and the shrimp, the grits were elevated to another level entirely. The recipe below serves six.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp canola oil

1 onion, preferably Vidalia, grated on a box grater

Scraped kernels from 2-3 ears of corn (about 1 cup)

2 cups milk

2 cups water

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup stone-ground or coarse-ground grits (a.k.a. polenta)

2 tbsp unsalted butter

¾ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (about 3 ounces)

1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh chives

Instructions:

1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring until transparent, about 2 min. Add the corn and continue to stir occasionally, until the kernels become soft, about 5 min.

2. Add the milk, water, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Whisk in the grits, decrease the heat to low, and simmer. Whisk occasionally until the grits are creamy and thick, 45 to 60 min. (Actually, when I was making this, it took about 25-30 min.) Stir in the butter, cheese, parsley, and chives. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.