Pop quiz time, people: Which of the following dishes is not a classic example of Southern cooking?

A. Fried chicken

B. Shrimp and grits

C. Chicken and dumplings

D. None of the above

Stumped? It’s B. Though everyone below the Mason-Dixon these days has their own recipe and signature twist, shrimp and grits didn’t start swimming onto menus until the late 90s. What began as a fisherman’s breakfast in the Carolina low country has evolved into an entrée often embellished with exotic mushrooms and bacon.

I had shrimp and grits for the first time in the mid 90s at my dear friend Austin Ford’s house. Austin loves Creole cooking, has stacks of Creole cookbooks and served shrimp and grits for a luncheon. I thought it was utterly delicious and loved it ever since.

In the summer of 1999, Garnie and Kara opened a restaurant at the Inn, which was still a B&B at the time, and needed a few solid recipes for their menu. I asked Austin for his shrimp and grits recipe and it was such a success I featured it on the Farmhouse menu when I took it over in 2009.

People think it’s absolutely loaded with butter, which isn’t true at all — it’s the combination of chicken stock and olive oil that gives Austin’s version its creamy, decadent flavor.

Do it buffet-style for a party: the shrimp sauce can be made ahead of time and refrigerated and the grits can also be prepared in advance and warmed in the oven or in a bain-marie on the stove.

Austin Ford’s Garlic Shrimp and Grits

• 2 pounds wild caught shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 9 garlic cloves , minced
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/8 cup lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 3/4 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
• 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
• 1 recipe creamy stoneground grits

Heat oil in saute pan and cook the garlic for 30 seconds.

Add chicken broth and lemon juice.

Season with salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce

Add shrimp and cook 1 – 2 minutes until pink.

Place hot grits in large serving bowl. Pour shrimp and hot liquid over grits.

Garnish with parsley.

When I think of Anne Quatrano, I think of her foie gras. Sure, I think of our friendship, her dry wit and annual visits to the ‘Be for the Southern Chefs Series, but mostly I think of her foie gras at Bacchanalia. It’s the best in the city.

Anne has a way of making food taste exquisitely delicious and look like art—both are equally important to her. So I had to laugh when I read her recipe for Wood Oven-Roasted Whole Foie Gras in her gorgeous cookbook, Summerland.

She walks readers through the process of marinating the whole lobe of foie gras in dessert wine, then roasting it in a pan lined with fresh figs. In the very last sentence, she writes, “Present immediately to your guests in the roasting pan for them to admire, then transfer to a warm platter … .”

Anne has such a style. And a fun flair for the dramatic.

Join Anne and me January 24 and 25 for another installment of the Southern Chefs Series. So much to learn, cook, eat and, of course, admire.

Space is limited to 10 participants per class. $695 includes preparing and eating dinner on Sunday and lunch on Monday with the chef, plus an overnight stay at the Inn at Serenbe. To register, call the Inn at 770.463.2610.

Wood Oven-Roasted Whole Foie Gras

• Courtesy of Summerland
• Serves 4 to 6

• 1 whole lobe (1 ½ pounds) foie gras
• 1 (375 ml) bottle sweet or dessert wine
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• Freshly cracked pepper
• 1 pound fresh figs (12 to 14), stems removed and halved
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme

Place the foie gras in a baking dish and generously douse with the wine. Season with the salt and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, for 12 to 24 hours.

Allow the foie gras to come to room temperature (about 1 hour). Preheat a wood oven or conventional oven to 500 degrees F.

Re-season the foie gras with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Pour off any remaining wine marinade and reserve. Score the lobe on the diagonal, at 1/8-inch intervals, to make a cross-hatch pattern. Line a roasting pan with the fresh figs, rosemary and thyme sprigs, then set the foie gras on top.

Brush the foie gras with the reserved marinade and add about ¼ cup to the bottom of pan. Roast for about 15 minutes. Keep a careful eye on it and rotate and baste it with the marinade and rendered fat from the pan every 2 minutes. If the foie appears to be browning too quickly, loosely tent the top with aluminum foil.

After about 15 minutes, the internal temperature should reach 135 degrees F. Present immediately to your guests in the roasting pan for them to admire, then transfer to a warm platter and garnish with the figs and sprigs of herbs from the pan.