Friday, May 22, 2015

Baked Cheese Grits with Rotel Tomatoes




AS SOUTHERNERS, WE LOVE GRITS. I cook them often, in all sorts of ways. After I made this dish, I realized I had posted only one other grits recipe, ever, here on my blog. That was all the way back in 2009 when I posted Shrimp and Grits, an amazing and delicious recipe.

You know Ro*Tel tomatoes, right? The cans of diced tomatoes with green chilies? They have been around forever, have the perfect amount of heat, and are delicious to use in so many ways. They are a pantry staple in my kitchen.

The other day, I was shopping at the gigantic grocery store, with Rotel tomatoes on my list. On the shelf I saw there are now 6 different types of Rotel tomatoes. Arrgh! Marketing strikes again. I don't mean to beat up on Rotel tomatoes; I love them. But it is the same thing with everything on my list. For every item, I have too many decisions to make. This is why the stores are so huge and shopping takes so long. On some levels choices are good but I don't always want to walk the equivalent of a city block and comb through undesired products, when I only have 8 items on my list.





Baked Cheese Grits with Rotel Tomatoes
2 cups water
1 1/4 cups milk
1 tsp. salt
1 cup stone ground grits
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup scallions, sliced
1/4 cup Velveeta, cubed
2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
1 (14 oz.) can Rotel tomatoes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 9 inch baking dish.

In a saucepan, bring the water and milk to a boil. Add the salt and slowly add the grits and return to a boil, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Reduce heat, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When grits are thickened, stir in the butter, scallions, Velveeta and 2 cups shredded cheddar. Stir until cheese is melted then stir in the tomatoes, mixing well. Pour grits into prepared dish and bake for 35 minutes. Sprinkle on the remaining cheddar and bake 5 minutes more.

Remove from oven and let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.





6 comments:

  1. Love grits! Never made them with Rotel tomatoes, though -- need to. And I really had all the different variations of things. 47 different kinds of spicing etc etc. All in a bid for more shelf space. I get all of that -- but I want to spice things the way I want to spice them. Anyway, good stuff -- thanks.

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    1. Hi John, I'm glad to know it's not just me with all the different flavors of products. If I want lime and cilantro, I will add it, if I want roasted garlic, ditto and so on. Anyway, thanks for reading and taking the time to comment. --Rocquie

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  2. This looks wonderful, and what a great dish to serve with eggs.

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    1. Melynda, this is good with eggs and also makes a great side dish with barbecue. Thank you for your comment. --Rocquie

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  3. Adding this to my "To-Do" list. Thanks, Rocquie!

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    1. Rosie, I hope you love it. Thank you for your comment, Rocquie

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