Creamy Grits/Polenta with Green Chiles and Poached Eggs

While some brands of Polenta/Grits will have you believe that they are one and the same, the grits I grew up on are definitely not polenta. They are made from hominy corn, which is corn treated with lye to remove the hull from the kernel. They have a slightly different taste than the Polenta/Grits, though the texture is relatively the same. What you see pictured here are Polenta/Grits (also called "yellow grits") but I'm sure both will yield ideal results.

Cook grits according to package directions for one serving (I usually use about 1 1/2 cups water to 1/2 cup grits, but you can adjust the amount of either for thicker or thinner grits). Add 1 Tbs diced green chiles (of course I had red ones, too, so I used both), 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1 Tbs. butter or a fingerful of grated cheese to the cooked grits. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve topped with poached egg, fresh ground pepper and an additional spoonful of green chiles. With fall quickly settling in, I had a craving for something warming and soothing. This definitely hit the spot!

For perfect poached eggs, I used Smitten Kitchen's advice. Note: this was only my second attempt at poached eggs without one of those little cookers; after the first time I tried it, I swore I'd never cook them in this way again; thanks to Smitten Kitchen I will probably never use the cooker again!