Round 2, Challenge 9 Joan Hamer
For Round 2, I prepared Spicy Shrimp with Gouda Grits in a Chocolate Wine Sauce. When I learned the ingredients for Round 2, the obvious thought was southern cooking. While I am certainly no expert in this type of cuisine, I have been to the South and enjoyed the style and flavors found there. I knew that finding a way to cook the shrimp would be the least of my challenges, while the grits and chocolate were definitely different and somewhat harder to try to incorporate into a dish that would work. I also found using the kale to be quite easy, as well as tasty. I made creamy grits using milk and Gouda cheese. They were both easy and delicious. The sauce took many tries to get just the right amount of sweet and savory to balance the spicy shrimp and grits. I tried varying amounts of chocolate with the wine and made several experimental sauces before finding one that my tasters all agreed worked the best. I had fun trying different ingredients and seeing what worked, but I used almost every pot I own! I have tried to incorporate chocolate into a wine sauce, but I found this worked quite well along with my other ingredients. The sauce made a beautiful presentation and the roasted kale added color and flavor to the main entree.
- Mary J. Insprucker