Insanely good shrimp & grits

Best I've ever had! Plus a layered salad that's just right for the season.

Happy Saturday, comfort-loving cook!

Last week, I was working with one of my day-job chef-clients, who had just created a fin-fish spin on shrimp and grits, the classic Lowcountry dish. Suddenly a vision swam in my head, of the best shrimp and grits I’ve ever tasted — the one from Marcus Samuelsson’s 2020 book The Rise: Black Cooks and the Soul of American Food. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Had to have it. And soon.

Fortunately, friends were coming to dinner the following night. Surely they’d be an enthusiastic audience — who doesn’t love shrimp and grits? Especially this one: rich and soothing and at the same time spicy, earthy and tangy, absolutely wonderful.

What would I serve as an appetizer? It needed to be green, for sure, and fresh.

Not asparagus vinaigrette or leeks ravigote; neither felt right. Something salady.

Layered salad! Also known as 7-Layer Salad and popular in the South and the Midwest, it’s not something I grew up with. I’d only made one once, from another 202…