April 15, 2019

You guys. This is Southern Comfort food at its FINEST. 

• Creamy, cheesy grits √
• Slow cooked, smoky collard greens √
• Deep fried “sausage” meatballs √
• …all smothered in thick, savory tomato gravy √

You drooling yet? I know I am.

Grab a glass of wine and let’s get to cookin’ this vegan version of Southern Grillades and Grits!

I’ll be honest, I’ve only had grillades and grits once, but they were so good that I’ll never forget them.

It was way before we were vegan…

Ashlee and I were visiting New Orleans for a Bengals vs. Saints game. After our victory (Bengals fans), we decided to head to Frenchmen Street for a night out. We ended up at a restaurant we passed by because the band was so amazing.We stopped for the band, but we stayed for the good food and great vibes!

I’ll never forget…we sat at a crowded bar, sipped on cocktails, danced a little, and shared a plate of grillades and grits. It was such a great night.

Sadly, I don’t remember the name of the restaurant, but I do remember those grillades and grits as if I ate them yesterday, and this is my version to honor that dish; vegan and cruelty free!

While the ingredients might be different, the overall flavors and many of the textures are reminiscent of traditional Grilades and Grits. I decided to fry the “meatballs” to add some texture to my vegan version of this southern classic. The fried meatballs are fun and delicious alternative to grillades.

This dish is a testament to true southern cooking. Low, slow, and filled with lots of love. This is the type of dish you make with some good music playing in the background and your favorite glass of wine in hand.

Traditionally, grillades and grits is a breakfast or brunch dish, but you can enjoy it any time of the day! In my opinion, it’s hearty enough to enjoy for dinner.

I hope you love this vegan version of grillades and grits as much as I do! If you make it, snap a photo an tag me on Instgram at @eat_figs_not_pigs. I love seeing your recreations of my recipes! Additonally, if you try this dish, I would so appreciate if you took a couple minutes to rate and comment below! Thanks so much! Until next time, friends!

XOXO

5.0 from 1 reviews

Southern Inspired Vegan "Grillades" and Grits with Collard Greens

 

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Prep time

1 hour

Cook time

2 hours

Total time

3 hours

 

Author: Ashley

Recipe type: Vegan

Cuisine: Southern Inspired

Serves: 4-6 servings

Ingredients

Vegan Meatballs

• 2 vegan eggs
• ¾ lb vegan sausage, such as Beyond Meat Spicy Italian
• 1 ½ cups Italian style bread crumbs, separated
• ¾ cups unsweetened non-dairy milk, such as Ripple
• ½ cup all purpose flour
• 2 cups vegetable oil, for frying
• Fresh chopped parsely, for garnish
• Fresh

Tomato Gravy

• 6 TBS vegan butter, such as Earth Balance
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large bell pepper, chopped
• 2 stalks celery - leaves trimmed and washed, chopped
• ¼ cup shallot, finely minced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 bay leaves
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• ½ tsp Cajun seasoning mix, such as Slap Ya Mama
• 1 - 14.5 stewed and crushed tomatoes
• ½ cup Marsala cooking wine
• 2 cups vegetable broth or imitation beef broth

Southern Style Collard Greens

• 1 TBS avocado oil
• 4 oz tempeh bacon, such as Lightlife Foods Fakin’ Bacon
• 1 cup white onion, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 3 lbs fresh collard greens, stems removed and sliced thin
• 3 cups vegetable broth or vegan chicken broth, such as Better Than Bouillon or Edward and Sons
• 2 TBS coconut sugar
• Juice of 1 large lemon
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste

Grits

• 1 ½ cups unsweetened non-dairy half & half, such as Forager
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup grits, such as Bob's Red Mill
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 ½ cups vegan cheddar shreds, such as Daiya
• 4 TBS vegan butter, such as Earth Balance

Instructions

Vegan Meatballs

1. Prepare vegan eggs according to package directions and set aside for 5-10 minutes.
2. In a separate larger bowl, crumble vegan sausage with your hands or spatula. Add prepared vegan eggs and bread crumbs. Mix gently until all the ingredients are fully combined. Using a melon baller or rounded tablespoon, form meatballs and transfer prepared meatballs onto a parchment paper lined plate.

Tomato Gravy

1. Add 6 tablespoons of butter to a large nonstick saucepan on medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the onion, bell pepper, and celery to the pan and cook, scraping the bottom and sides to loosen any browned bits, until the vegetables are softened, about 4 minutes.
2. Add the shallot and garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the bay leaves, seasonings, and stewed tomatoes with juice and cook about 4 minutes.
3. Stir in the wine, stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, partially cover, and simmer about 2 hours. Remove the bay leaves.

Southern Style Collard Greens

1. While the gravy is sauteing, prepare the collard greens.
2. In a large non stick pan on medium heat, add oil and tempeh bacon. Crumble the bacon with a wooden spoon and cook it until it’s golden brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Add onion and saute another 6 minutes, mixing often. Add garlic and saute another 30 seconds. Add the collard greens and broth, stir to combine. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Cover partially, reduce heat to low and saute for about an hour and a half, giving the collards a mix every 20 minutes. The liquid should reduce completely and the collards should cook down to half. Off the heat, add fresh lemon juice, red pepper flakes, and salt & pepper to taste.

Grits

1. Place the milk and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the grits and lower the heat to produce a gentle simmer. Cook, partially covered and stirring often, until the grits are tender, adding more water if the grits get too thick before they are tender, 45 to 60 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, cheese, and butter and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

Meatballs cont.

1. While the grits are simmering, add oil to a sauté pan and heat on medium heat. Now set up dredging station. In one shallow bowl, add non-dairy milk. In a second shallow bowl, add flour. In a third, the remaining bread crumbs. Roll the balls first into the flour, then dip into the milk, then roll into the breadcrumbs. Repeat until all meatballs are coated. Once all the meatballs are coated, add half of the meatballs to the pan, and leave them sit until they are brown on one side. Shake the pan to loosen the meatballs and then turn each one with tongs to brown the other side. Keep turning with tongs until they are completely and evenly browned. This should take about 4-6 minutes per side. Transfer the meatballs to a paper towel lined plate to drain.Repeat this process until all the meatballs are fried. Assemble you plate with with warmed grits, collards, your fried meatballs. Top with tomato gravy fresh parsley & green onion. Enjoy hot.

Notes

*Recipe loosely adapted from Emeril Lagasse

3.5.3251