Homestyle Grits Casserole Recipe

1½ cups regular grits
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups shredded Cheddar
3 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup butter
1½ teaspoons garlic or onion salt
Dash of Tabasco sauce
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, optional
1 (2-ounce) can French fried onions, crushed

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan.
2. Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add grits and salt and return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, 5 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat.
3. Add cheese, eggs, butter, garlic salt, Tabasco, and chiles, if using; mix well. Pour into baking pan. Bake 50 minutes. Sprinkle crushed onions on top and bake 10 minutes longer. Serves 16.

Tips From Our Test Kitchen: The grits casserole may be prepared a day ahead and refrigerated until baking time. To reduce fat content, use 2 cups Cheddar and 16 ounces Neufchatel.

Nutritional facts per serving: 250 calories, 17g ft, 10g protein, 15g carbohydrates, 1g fiber, 520mg sodium.