Shrimp and Grits with Spinach & Tomatoes
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This Shrimp and Grits with Spinach & Tomatoes is a dish that will impress your friends and family! It is as delicious as it is beautiful! These cheesy grit cakes are smothered with jumbo shrimp, sauteed mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach.
What You Will ❤️ About Shrimp & Grits with Spinach
- Impressive – this is a dish that will impress your guests! I actually had it the first time at someone else’s house and was so wowed – I begged him for the recipe and made it myself!
- All-in-One Dish – This dish has your starch, protein and veggies all in one dish!
- Light! You are rarely going to eat shrimp & grits and think – man that was a light dish! But these are not near as heavy as most grits recipes!
Ingredients for Shrimp & Grits
Don’t let this overwhelm you – there are quite a few ingredients – but some repeat between the two and each one is very important to the recipe! Every one adds to the WOW factor!
Grit Cakes Ingredients
- Butter, Salt & Pepper
- Yellow grits – there’s not much difference in taste between white and yellow but the yellow are prettier. Don’t use instant grits or quick cooking grits for this recipe.
- Cheddar cheese & Blue cheese crumbles – these are CHEESY but they’re not your typical soft grits. It may seem like an odd combo – but it’s so good!
- Cooked bacon – I recommend UNDERcooking your bacon because you want the bacon flavor and not to bite into a hard crunch in your grits!
- Green onion – this adds texture – you could swap with chives or scallions
- Flour & Vegetable Oil – after chilling, you’ll be frying the cakes with flour & oil!
Shrimp, Tomato & Spinach Sauce
- Onions – you’ll need Red, Yellow and Green Onions!
- Shiitake mushrooms – you could use button or portobello as well
- Roasted red pepper & Cherry tomatoes – these will help make your sauce!
- Large shrimp – always get raw, peeled & deveined
- Capers – just a little pickled flavor adds a nice bite!
- blackening seasoning – blackening or cajun seasoning will add a kick to the sauce. If you need more kick – add a little hot sauce on top when you serve.
- Minced garlic – for this recipe – only fresh garlic cloves will do!
- Dry white wine – recommend Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc – I’m not a wine drinker so I just buy the little 4 packs for no waste!
- Spinach leaves – you can also use baby spinach to add some green to the dish!
- More butter, salt & black pepper
How to Make Shrimp and Grits
These shrimp and grits are really easy to make but there are a few steps. First you make the grits – which are SO easy! It’s basically water and grits in a saucepan! Then you refrigerate them so they set up like a “cake”. Then when ready to serve – coat with flour and fry lightly to reheat.
When you’re ready for dinner – you’ll make your shrimp, tomato & spinach sauce to go on top. That shrimp topping only takes 15 minutes to make – it’s crazy how easy it was! Saute shrimp, tomatoes, mushrooms and some other goodies and pour over your grit cakes!
Recipe Variations
- No Bacon – you could leave the bacon out if you want to keep it a little healthier
- No Cheese – want it even healthier? Leave out the cheeses too! Trust me – this recipe is delicious even without the bacon & cheese.
- Add More Veggies – If you are not a fan of tomatoes and mushrooms, you could easily swap out other vegetables to this shrimp and grits recipe such as zucchini, , corn, yellow/orange peppers or broccoli.
Tips, Tricks & FAQs
How do you store and reheat leftover shrimp & grits?
Store leftovers in an airtight container (I like these glass storage ones) in the refrigerator for up to a week. Reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.
Can you freeze shrimp and grits?
You can easily cut this recipe in half and make shrimp and grits for two. I would just make the grits in mini loaf pans so it would set up. Do not freeze the shrimp topping.
What to Serve with Shrimp and Grits
More Shrimp Dishes
Shrimp and Grits with Spinach & Tomatoes
This Shrimp and Grits with Spinach & Tomatoes is a dish that will impress your friends and family! It is as delicious as it is beautiful! These cheesy grit cakes are smothered with jumbo shrimp, sauteed mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach.
Equipment
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Ingredients
Grit Cakes
- 3 1/2 cups water
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 cup yellow grits plus 2 Tbsp
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1/3 cup blue cheese crumbled
- 3 slices bacon cooked & chopped
- 1/4 cup green onion 2 onions, diced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
Shrimp, Tomatoes & Spinach
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 Tbsp red onion diced
- 3 tbsp yellow onion diced
- 1 cup shiitake mushrooms sliced
- 3 tbsp roasted red pepper roughly chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 16 large shrimp raw, peeled & deveined
- 1 Tbsp capers
- 1 1/2 tbsp blackening seasoning
- 1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 cups dry white wine
- 1 cup spinach leaves roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp green onion diced
- 4 tbsp butter cut into slices
Instructions
Grit Cakes
- grease 9x9x3pan
- in a medium saucepan combine the water, butter, salt and pepper bring to a boil3 1/2 cups water, 2 tbsp butter, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper
- lower to medium-high heat, gradually stir in the grits and continue to whisk until all the water is absorbed and the grits become thick but are still smooth, about 5 min1 cup yellow grits
- add the cheeses, bacon and green onion and stir until thoroughly mixed1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 1/3 cup blue cheese, 3 slices bacon, 1/4 cup green onion
- while hot – pour the grits into the prepared pan and refrigerate to cool and allow the grits to set up (at least a few hours)
Shrimp, Tomatoes & Spinach
- in a large skillet, heat olive oil over high heat.1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- add red onion, yellow onion and mushrooms – allow to caramelize slightly, about 5 min3 Tbsp red onion, 3 tbsp yellow onion, 1 cup shiitake mushrooms
- add the red pepper, tomatoes, shrimp, capers and blackening seasoning. stir to coat and keep the skillet moving around3 tbsp roasted red pepper, 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 16 large shrimp, 1 Tbsp capers, 1 1/2 tbsp blackening seasoning
- once the shrimp is seared on both sides (slightly pink and not opaque), add the garlic and saute for 10 seconds1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
- stir in the wine to deglaze and reduce to medium heat – allow wine to reduce for about 3 min until slight thickened2 cups dry white wine
- remove from heat and stir in spinach, green onion and butter1 cup spinach leaves, 3 tbsp green onion, 4 tbsp butter
- wilt spinach and stir until butter is melted and sauce appears glossy.
- Assembly
- just before serving, remove grits from refrigerator and cut into four large squares
- coat both sides of each cake in flour and preheat oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- lay grit cakes into hot oil until golden brown – be sure to fry each side about 2-3 min per side
- place one grits cake in a shallow bowl and cover with the shrimp sauce. serve with lemon wedges and grate lemon zest over the top
Notes
– You can easily cut this in half and make it for two
– You could even put the grits cake into muffin tins or mini loaf pans
– I’m not much of a wine drinker, so I bought a 4-pack of mini-bottles of white wine and use those for cooking
– Always buy raw shrimp! I take the tails off before cooking.
– Be sure to use a non-stick skillet for heating grit cakes
– Don’t have capers? Dice up a few green olives! **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**
– You could even put the grits cake into muffin tins or mini loaf pans
– I’m not much of a wine drinker, so I bought a 4-pack of mini-bottles of white wine and use those for cooking
– Always buy raw shrimp! I take the tails off before cooking.
– Be sure to use a non-stick skillet for heating grit cakes
– Don’t have capers? Dice up a few green olives! **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**
Nutrition
Serving: 1cakeCalories: 833kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 23gFat: 52gSaturated Fat: 21gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gMonounsaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 143mgSodium: 2027mgPotassium: 707mgFiber: 4gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1896IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 245mgIron: 3mg
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