Basic Grits Cakes for Anytime of Day

 

Grits, a pantry staple.  What polenta is to an Italian is nothing compared to what grits are to a Southerner.  If you are unfamiliar with Grits, they have a polenta or porridge-like texture.

 

Requiring only water to make, they can be whipped up for any meal of the day; Eggs and grits for breakfast, cheese and broccoli grits casserole for lunch, Shrimp and Grits for dinner. I have yet to serve them for dessert but my childhood favorite of grits with butter and brown sugar would certainly count.

I often get carried away making grits and the pot grows leaving me with leftovers.  I never mind leftovers because it means one less thing I will have to cook later. Lucky for me also, leftover grits make tasty little cakes. These easy cakes can be transformed into impressive plates of food.

The leftover grits for this particular batch came from the standard daily breakfast procedure, but feel free to make a fresh batch of grits just for the cakes.  The more dairy in the grits, the softer the cakes will be. To make firmer cakes, use grits made with a high ratio of water or broth.

 

How to make Grits Cakes:

If the grits are plain, I like to season them with onion and garlic powders, paprika, salt and pepper.

Using leftovers, scoop soft grits onto a piece of waxed paper. Spread grits into a uniformly thick mass.  Allow to cool.

After the mass of grits have cooled, use a round biscuit cutter to make perfectly round cakes.

Dust each of the grit cakes in flour.  Fry each cake in a greased pan for 2-3 minutes per side until golden.

The outside should be brown and crispy and the inside will be warm and soft.

Serve warm.

 

This basic process can be varied in so many ways from the flavor of the grits, the coating on the outside, to the size of the cake and what you serve with it.

Enjoy!