Remember when that was a saying? I seem to remember that I was real young, so I looked it up and it came from a TV show called ‘Alice’ which ran from 1974 to 1985. I didn’t watch a lot of TV growing up, especially at that age but I would have been in grade school during some of that time but I sure remember that saying.

Anyway, that is not what I wanted to talk about today. But, I did want to talk about grits. If you have only had them at Cracker Barrel or never lived in the south, then I would wager that you probably don’t like them. Grits are ground corn, more coarse than cornmeal and very similar to Polenta. It is prepared as a porridge consistency, like cream of wheat and is typically eaten at breakfast time, although they can be a side for any meal.

My wife and I have been watching a show on TV about creative chefs and their restaurants. One of the dishes made is grits and liver. That really caught my eye because I have a lot of liver in the freezer and I am always looking for ways to use it. So, I put grits on the shopping list and my wife wanted some for breakfast. That is what I made today.

What makes these grits so much better? Well first of all it is all about the recipe. You can just boil the grits in water and a little salt but to do it up right, you need to do a more.

Start by bringing grits (3/4 cup), water (2 cups), salt (1/2 teaspoon) and a bay leaf to a boil and once it is there, set the pot aside for fifteen minutes.

After the grits have hydrated, bring the pot back to the stove and add butter (4 tablespoons) and cream (1/2 cup), I used half and half because I am trying to use it up before it goes bad. Keep the contents at a low simmer to reduce some of the liquid and grate some parmesan cheese (1/8 cup or 1 oz) into grits. That’s it, but so much richer than boiled in water.

I fried up some sausage links to put on the top. But you could also add eggs, like over easy, or some extra cheddar cheese, bacon and onion as other suggestions. When my wife worked for the state of South Carolina, they would have fundraisers in the morning where you would buy a bowl of grits and then add your own toppings to the bowl.

If you don’t live in the south, this is a simple and different breakfast idea. Give it a try if you are wanting something different than oatmeal in the morning.