Date Night at Home: Shrimp & Grits

About once a week or so, we put the kids to bed early and eat a nice dinner together. This past week, eMeals had a lovely looking date night meal on their low calorie plan.  I saw it and knew immediately that this was our kind of meal.

I changed up the recipe just a bit to use low sodium bacon, baby bella mushrooms (instead of regular ones) and to use a mixture of water and chicken broth in the grits.  Below is my recipe.

Low Country-Style Shrimp

4 slices low sodium bacon
16 oz baby bella mushroom
2 cups cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp
1 cup fat free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Cook bacon until crisp. Reserve about 1/2 tbsp of the bacon grease and put it in a large skillet. Crumble the bacon and set aside.

Add mushrooms and garlic to the skillet. sauté for about 6 minutes or until the mushrooms are browned and tender. Add the shrimp and cook for about 3 minutes or until they turn pink.

Whisk together the chicken broth and cornstarch; add the broth mixture and the lemon juice to the skillet. Cook for about 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir in bacon and serve this deliciousness over Creamy Parmesan Grits.

Creamy Parmesan Grits

1 1/4 cups fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 3/4 cups water
1 cup milk
1 cup instant grits
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Bring the broth, milk and water to a boil. Add salt and pepper. Whisk in the grits and cook, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.

Stir in the cheese and you're done!

I served this with sliced French bread and sweet tea, because those are the best accompaniments to a southern meal.

If you're looking to simplify your meal planning, you should head over to eMeals and check it out!