Goat Cheese & Sweet Corn Grits – Creamy sweet corn grits get even creamier with a few dollops of smooth goat cheese
Summer is nearing and that means so much: no more winter coats, spending lots of time at the pool, and my favorite produce comes into season.
One of those foods is corn. Haven’t you noticed that fresh corn take over the produce section of the grocery store during the summer? At my grocery store, they even keep a trash can nearby so you can shuck your own corn before bagging it.
Corn tastes so sweet in the summer so it’s so hard to resist it. I love buying it to grill or use in my roasted corn guacamole. But recently, I found a new way to enjoy it: in creamy, Southern grits, along with some tangy goat cheese.
Which brings us to today’s recipe…Goat Cheese & Sweet Corn Grits!
What are grits?
I realize that if you don’t live in the South, you may not be completely aware what grits are. I lived in Florida for 23 years and never had a good serving of grits until I moved to what some call the hub of the South – Atlanta, Georgia.
If you’ve never had grits before, grits are coarsely-ground corn kernels that are cooked with water or milk. Many who don’t like grits probably tried them with water and maybe had them unseasoned. That’s what happened to me – I had a very generic version of grits that tasted so bland that I never wanted to eat it again.
But then I moved to Atlanta and had the best grits I’ve ever had – creamy, dreamy girts that were cooked with love (and tons of cream and butter).
How are these grits made?
The grits are made pretty simply, actually. It doesn’t take much to give them tons to flavor. Let’s break down the recipe:
- Boil water, milk, and butter together
- Whisk in grits slowly and cook
- Cook fresh corn kernels with onion and garlic
- Puree corn mixture and add to grits
- Melt goat cheese into grits and serve!
Who knew something so incredible could be so easy to make???
Tips & Tricks
These grits are a great, simple recipe to add to your repertoire. However, regardless of its simplicity, I still have a few tips for this recipe that I think you’ll find helpful:
- Make sure you buy stone-ground grits – not instant grits! These grits are meant to cook slowly so they have time to incorporate all those yummy flavors.
- Be very careful when pureeing the corn mixture in the blender. To allow the steam to escape, remove the center hole from the lid and cover it with a kitchen towel while you blend the corn mixture.
- Fresh goat cheese cheese ALWAYS melts and combines much easier than the crumbled stuff. So I HIGHLY recommend you buy a log of goat cheese for this recipe to obtain maximum creaminess.
- I use fresh corn for this recipe. To easily cut the kernels off the cob, I use a bundt pan – a trick I learned from The Pioneer Woman. The hole in the pan helps hold the cob in place while I cut off the kernels. Bonus: the kernels are caught in the pan so they don’t fly everywhere!
These grits are so incredible that you won’t be able to hold back from “sampling” it so many times throughout the process. I cannot confirm or deny that this specifically happened to me.
Goat Cheese & Sweet Corn Grits
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons butter unsalted
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup grits not quick-cooking!
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups chopped Spanish onion
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels about 3 ears of corn
- 4 ounces goat cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pour the water, milk, butter, and 1 teaspoon salt into a medium sauce pan. Heat mixture over medium-high heat until it begins to boil. Once it's boiling, very very slowly pour in the grits while whisking quickly for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and let cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the grits cook, add olive oil to medium skillet and heat to medium. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and corn kernels and cook for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add corn mixture to a blender and carefully blend mixture until it's pureed. Allow the steam to exit the blender after 10 seconds so it doesn't build up. Once the mixture is smooth, it is ready.
- When the grits are cooked, add in the pureed corn mixture. Add goat cheese to grits, about 1 ounce at a time so that it can melt completely into grits. Serve immediately.
Notes
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I am obsessed with this recipe! The combo of goat cheese and sweet corn in grits is so creative. I work with AI photo editing tools and have been looking for beautiful Southern dishes to feature in a food photography project. The tip about using a bundt pan to cut corn kernels is a game changer — I never would have thought of that. Also totally agree about buying the fresh log of goat cheese over the crumbled kind. The creaminess factor is just on another level. Making this for my Sunday brunch crew this weekend!
What a creative twist on grits! I never thought about pairing goat cheese with sweet corn but it makes so much sense. The creaminess of the cheese would complement the natural sweetness perfectly. I love finding unique flavor combinations like this – pictro has some great food photography inspiration too if anyone is interested in plating ideas like these.
I never thought to pair goat cheese with sweet corn in grits, but this combination sounds incredible. The creaminess of the grits with the tangy cheese must make for such a comforting dish. I make a lot of breakfast hashes at home and this gives me ideas for a whole new direction. Will definitely try this next weekend with some poached eggs on top.
Honestly I have only had grits a handful of times but this must be changed asap! this recipe looks delicious! I love how you removed the corn kernes! Great idea
The goat cheese must give these the perfect saltiness and the sweet corn a great amount of sweetness. Fantastic flavor pairing together and a hearty dish!
Yeah, I live in Canada, so I had no idea what grits were until I started reading food blogs. I don’t even think they sell it in Canada! Where do ou think I could get it?
Grits a is definitely comfort for me, and I live in the north 🙂 Your recipe sounds so tasty with the goat cheese instead of yellow American!
I love grits and the idea of fresh corn in them, yum! Thanks for the tip on removing the corn kernels from the cobb!
Yum yum! Looks super creamy and delicious!!! I love corn and can’t wait to try this recipe as soon as I can.
Oh my gosh that bundt cake pan trick has changed my life! How have I never known that one! Summer is coming and all I want is corn EVERYTHING so this is coming right up!
This looks so yummy! I love your tip for cutting corn from the cobb, what a great idea! Can’t wait to give this a try, it’ll pair great with our next barbecue night.
This sounds like a delightful recipe! I’ve never had grits but maybe it is similar to polenta, which I like. The addition of goat cheese is fantastic!
What a great southern dish. I have never thought about adding corn to the top of grits. I bet it really enhances the flavor.
You’re right I’ve never had good grits haha. I’ve had them only a few times from relatives when I visited them in Florida. They were bland – nothing like what these seem like! You pretty much had me at goat cheese 🙂
We eat corn all summer long and I love finding new ways to use it. These grits look creamy and delicious with a wonderful corn flavor.
I’m vegan so I don’t eat goat cheese, but I might try your recipe using a vegan cheese 🙂
I really like cheesy grits. This looks like a jazzed up variation and I am excited to try it.
Ermagawd yes please!! These sound delicious!! Yum what a great comfort food dish. We don’t have grits over here in Australia but it makes me want to make them. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for such a unique and amazing recipe. It is a must try recipe for me. Love the cheesy flavor to it. Yum.
Goat cheese in grits…you have to be some kind of culinary genius! How delicious!
This looks so delicious and comforting! Can’t wait to try this! 🙂
I bet the corn and goat cheese pair together wonderfully! Can’t wait to try it.
I don’t think I’ve ever had goat cheese before but this dish looks so fresh and delicious!
This recipe looks fabulous…I really love your balance of the goat cheese with the sweet corn.