Grit Cakes

This Southern comfort food is one your whole family will enjoy. It’s perfect for breakfast, a side dish for dinner, or an appetizer and is so easy to make. Best of all, the ingredients are simple and economical.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine Southern

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Chill Time 2

Total Time 2 30

Servings

Calories 386kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

2 cups (840ml) water
3 cups (710ml) milk
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
2 cup (340g) stone-ground grits
½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, plus +2 tablespoons for frying
1-2 cup (120-240g) sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 egg

Instructions

Grease a 9x12-inch baking pan with baking spray. Set aside.
Add water, milk, bay leaf, and salt to a large saucepan. Bring to a boil.
Gradually whisk in the grits until you have added them all to the pot. Keep stirring with a whisk to prevent lumps. You may need to remove the saucepan from heat while getting rid of lumps.
Reduce heat to low and cook grits at a bare simmer, covered, frequently stirring, until water is fully absorbed, and grits thickened. This will take you about 15 minutes.
Then remove grits from heat; add butter and cheese. Stir with a whisk until cheese completely melts.
Spread out the grits onto the prepared baking sheet and, using an offset rubber spatula, spread evenly across the bottom of the pan. Let the grits sheet pan sit out until they have cooled to room temperature. Cover with foil and refrigerate until very firm, about 2 hours to overnight.
Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat when chilled grits are ready to fry. Cut the grits into preferred circular sizes using a cookie cutter. (I used a 2-inch cookie cutter.)
Whisk the egg in a small dish and brush on grit cake tops. Fry each side of grits until golden in color, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Do not forget to brush the other side of the grits cake with the egg wash when you flip it over.
Serve immediately with shrimp or ham.

Notes

When whisking in the grits, don't stop stirring. In fact, you may want to remove the saucepan from the heat for a minute or two to really combine the milk and grits. This will prevent lumps from forming.
Cutting the grits into circles is so much easier if you use a cookie-cutter. I used a 2-inch one to make mine.
Never fry your grit cakes any hotter than medium heat. It may take a little longer to get that beautiful golden color, but if you turn the heat up, you'll burn the butter, and they won't taste near as good.
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.

Nutrition