A sweet and savory breakfast of fried grits, fresh peaches and toasted pecans. Make the grits the day before and let set in the refrigerator overnight to firm. Slice and fry the next morning for breakfast.
*See Kitchen Notes for more information, substitutions and links
- 3 cups water
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 3/4 cups quick-cooking grits* (NOT instant grits)
- 1 large peach, sliced
- 1/4 cup pecans* toasted and coarsely chopped
- 2-3 Tbsp. warm maple syrup
- 4 - 6 large fresh mint leaves, chopped
- Butter or butter substitute
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Toast the pecans in a heavy skillet over a medium heat. Toss frequently to keep them from burning. Once nice and toasted, transfer to cutting board and coarsely chop. You could also use Oven Roasted Pecans*.
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Divide the peach slices between the two plates.
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Place one or two pieces of fried grits on each of two serving plates.
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Sprinkle the peaches and grits with the mint and chopped pecans.
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Warm the maple syrup in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Pour about 1 Tbsp. of syrup over each dish.
Serve and enjoy!
Grits – I prefer hominy grits or white corn grits for breakfast dishes, but fried polenta (yellow grits) works just fine. No need to add anything but salt to the grits because ingredients like cheese and butter tend to soften the grits, making it more difficult to hold together into slices when you fry.
How to Fry Grits / Polenta
The Fruit – Peaches are excellent with this dish, but you could add a few strawberries, blueberries or blackberries. In fact, just about any fruit or combination of fruit works.
Pecans – Pecans, walnut, almonds are all good nuts for this dish. This is one of those dishes when it's nice to already have some oven roasted pecans on hand.
Replacing Fried Grits with Fried Cheese – I have also made this dish with fried cheese, like Halloumi or a dense feta or Queso Fresco. Any cheese with a high melting point works. The fried cheese transforms this dish into a nice little dessert.