James Villas

Tarpon Springs Feta Grits Soufflé

Preparation info

  • Difficulty

    Easy

  • Makes

    4 to 6

    servings

Appears in

The Glory of Southern Cooking

The Glory of Southern Cooking

By James Villas

Published 2007

  • About

Tarpon Springs, Florida, has had one of the South’s most active Greek communities ever since immigrants began developing the area’s sponge industry decades ago, and as in my hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina, the Greek Americans were quick to adapt all sorts of Southern ingredients to the culinary traditions of their mother country. This combination of grits and feta cheese is stunning, a dish intended to be served as a main course, with maybe some sliced dried garlic sausage, a few marinated cucumbers, corn sticks, and a good chilled spicy white wine.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup quick-cooking grits
  • 3 cups whole milk
  • 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) butter, at room temperature
  • 4 large eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup finely crumbled Greek or Romanian feta cheese
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Mild paprika to taste

Method

In a large saucepan, combine the water and salt and bring to a boil. Gradually add the grits, reduce the heat to low, and stir till the grits are thick and creamy, 5 to 10 minutes. Add 2 cups of the milk, stir well, return the mixture to a boil, and continue cooking 5 minutes longer, stirring. Add the remaining 1 cup of milk, the butter, eggs, feta cheese, Worcestershire, and pepper and stir steadily till the butter and cheese are well incorporated. Scrape the mixture into a buttered 2-quart soufflé dish or casserole, cover with plastic wrap, and chill overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350°F, sprinkle top of the mixture with paprika, and bake till golden, about 45 minutes. Serve hot.

© 2007 All rights reserved. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.