Food Wonk: Cheese Garlic Grits

Cheese garlic grits

I love cheese garlic grits. I make them every year for Thanksgiving and whenever else I can work them into a meal. They are great reheated the next day. I love the combination of cheese garlic grits with cranberry relish. I actually just ate a plate of leftover grits and cranberry relish. Yum! I only use Bob Red Mill's grits. They make the best grits.
I interchange the cheeses depending on my mood. Somethings I add extra cheese. Steven likes garlic cheese (well cheese food) in these grits but lately it has been hard to find. I have used sharp and medium cheddar cheese, colby cheese, and a mixture of Italian cheeses. I do grate cheese for these and I do not use preshredded cheese from a bag. I love string cheese in my grits (I have no idea why but I do) so I tear up pieces of string cheese and add them to the grits. String cheese certainly isn't necessary and is not traditional. Some people use milk instead of water to cook their grits. I don't think it adds that much except calories. I also have been know to mix and match the spices. My current favorite is Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning. I also have used cayenne pepper; ancho chili pepper, chipotle pepper; and curry in place of the Creole seasoning. I use fresh minced garlic but I know people who use garlic powder (just don't use garlic salt).

Cheese Garlic Grits

6 Cups (1440 ml) of Water
2 Cups (360 g) of Grits
1/2 Cup (113 g) of Butter
10 oz. (227 to 255 g) of Cheddar Cheese, Grated
3 Sticks of Mozzarella String Cheese, Cut into Small Pieces (Optional)
3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
1 Tsp of Creole Seasoning
Salt and Pepper, to Taste
Preheat oven to 350F/176 C/ Gas Mark 4. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil and add grits. Lower heat and cook slowly until thickened about 8 to 10 minutes. Add butter and stir to combine.