Breakfast Goals...Featuring Tex-Mex Egg Bowls with Cheesy Chorizo Grits #eggs #grits #breakfastgoals #brinner

Like most of you, we're entering our second week of corona virus social distancing at home on my end. How are you holding up so far? Leave me a comment below telling me how you're spending your days -- I'm always looking for fun ways to be productive during this time. So far, I've been spending lots of time in the kitchen coming up with some tasty, comforting treats to share with you! Today, I'm sharing a recipe for my super comforting Tex-Mex Egg Bowls with Cheesy Chorizo Grits. A base of creamy grits flavored with spicy Mexican chorizo and jalapeno cheddar is topped with an egg, crumbled cheese, and a quick avocado salsa. It’s delicious, comforting, and full of flavor. It's a perfect entree for breakfast, weekend brunch...or even a weeknight brinner. I used a metal Texas-shaped cookie cutter as an egg mold, but any metal cookie cutter you have will work. A bunny cookie cutter would be fun with Easter coming up!

Tex-Mex Egg Bowls with Cheesy Chorizo Grits

a Weekend Gourmet Original

Ingredients (makes 4 bowls):

• 4 extra large eggs
• 1 tbs. salted butter
• 1 cup crumbled Cotija cheese [NOTE: can use feta...or even shredded cheddar...if you can't find cotija at your grocery store]
• 1 small avocado, diced +1 cup pico de gallo + juice of half a lime

For the grits:

• 2 ½ cups chicken broth
• ½ cup half-and-half OR whole milk
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• ¾ cup quick-cooking grits
• 2 tbs. salted butter
• ¾ cup cooked, crumbled Mexican chorizo
• ¾ cup shredded jalapeno-cheddar OR pepper Jack 
• 1 tbs. chopped cilantro

Directions:

Step 1: Add the avocado, lime juice, and pico de gallo to a small bowl or measuring cup. Stir to combine and store in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble your bowls. Cook the chorizo in a non-stick skillet over med-high heat until cooked and crumbly.

Step 2: Make the grits. Bring the chicken broth, half and half or milk, and garlic salt to a boil over med-high heat. Slowly whisk the grits into the boiling liquid. Reduce the heat to med-low and cook for 5-8 minutes. Be sure to give the grits a stir every couple of minutes to ensure perfectly creamy, smooth grits. When the grits are cooked, remove from the heat. Add the butter, reserved chorizo, cheese, and cilantro. Stir until all of the ingredients are incorporated and the cheese is melted.

Step 3: Melt the butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until bubbly and the skillet is hot. Crack the eggs into your favorite metal cookie cutter that sprayed with a generous amount of nonstick spray. Cook the eggs sunny side up or over easy...whichever you prefer. 

Step 4: To assemble the bowls, spoon one quarter of the grits into four serving bowls. Top each bowl of grits with one cooked egg, a quarter of the reserved avocado salsa, ¼ cup of Cotija cheese, and additional chopped cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve!

Not only is this dish fun to look at, it’s deliciously filling too! The creamy grits are mildly spicy from the addition of chorizo and jalapeno-infused cheese, but it’s a moderate heat. The chilled avocado salsa is a nice flavor and textural contrast, the Cotija cheese has a salty bite similar to feta…and the runny egg yolk brings everything together perfectly! Their Texas-shaped eggs are a fun twist that made the dish a little more special. We enjoyed these bowls for weekend brunch, and we weren’t hungry for hours – it’s definitely a “stick to your ribs” kind of dish.