By popular demand—okay, two of my (approximately) four readers made the same request—I decided to tackle one of the cutest but most maligned of all veggies: the brussels sprout.
I found this undertaking especially challenging, because I decidedly dislike brussels sprouts. Indeed, my most vivid memories of this particular vegetable, which both of my parents loved (lucky me!), involved the smell of once-frozen brussels sprouts boiling away. Now, I respect that boiling was an economical and efficient way to prepare brussels sprouts. But it also seemed to trigger the hapless sprouts to release the unmistakable odor of—comment se dit?—flatulence. Needless to say, I have consequently avoided brussels sprouts for most of my adult life, eschewing perhaps the most adorable veggie on the market today.
But no longer. Duty called.
So I asked around about what to do with this cutest of all my veggie nemeses, and hit pay dirt when talking to my brother-in-law’s wife, Lauren. (Query: Does this make her my sister-in-law? My sister-in-law-in-law? My out-law? Would someone please tell me what this relationship is called?) Anyhow, she said her mom, Annie Connolly, has a great recipe for roasted brussels sprouts. It involves balsamic vinegar, honey, maple syrup, and olive oil—all ingredients I can get behind. I immediately seized on the idea; first, no boiling was involved, and, more importantly, I trust Lauren’s taste almost implicitly. She’s the author of an amazing food blog (I Love You, Now Eat This), and everything of hers I’ve ever eaten has been fantastic. I decided immediately to make her mom’s recipe, sight unseen, for twelve people at Thanksgiving.
Ah, beginner’s bliss.
When I got the recipe the night before Thanksgiving, I discovered that like many good cooks, Lauren’s mom simply eyeballed quantities, so none were given. Rather, I received a list of ingredients, with basic prep instructions and roasting time and temperature.
Great googly moogly. It was going to be an interesting Thanksgiving.
Luckily, when it comes to cooking I am blessed to have the cheerful bluster of a newbie (what could possibly go wrong?), so on my way to my parents’ house the next morning, I picked up the ingredients for my last-minute dish, all smiles and certainty.
Until about an hour and a half before Thanksgiving dinner.
That was when the cold realization hit me: with three pounds of washed brussels sprouts laid out before me, I didn’t even know how to go about “trimming” them as the recipe indicated, much less cooking them.
I sounded the alarm, and my brother’s wife (definitely my sister-in-law, that much I know) came to my rescue. Under her guidance, I learned to prep the sprouts: cut off the end of the stem of each and strip away any blemished leaves. I also discovered that (luckily) roasting sprouts without a roasting pan is no problem: just cover a baking sheet in foil and oil it lightly.
As for getting the proportion of olive oil to vinegar to honey to maple syrup right, well, I just had to wing it. I tasted as I went and implored anyone who walked into the kitchen to try the vinaigrette. Incredibly, the sprouts still turned out well:
The insides of the sprouts were tender; the outer leaves beautifully caramelized into a crisp-chewy brand of goodness that completely sold me on them—me, the mighty disliker of brussels sprouts! They even got raves from the sprout-eaters at the table.
Emboldened, I decided to do a little more research on brussels sprouts, since I planned on tweaking the proportions on another batch at home to see if I had done everything right. In the course of my research, though, I stumbled upon a second and utterly different recipe for brussels sprouts. This one involved shredding them, tossing them with lemon juice, and sautéing them with olive oil, butter, lemon zest and fresh garlic. Now that I knew that brussels sprouts were actually good for eating, I decided to try that recipe too.So this past weekend, in a 24-hour period, my husband and I both put away another pound of brussels sprouts each in service of Veggie Quest, as I made batches of both recipes. (Yep, you read that right—we ate a pound each.) Which just goes to show that we, brussels sprouts skeptics both of us, have been converted.
First, though, a few words about choosing brussels sprouts, gleaned from my 1997 copy of The Joy of Cooking. Brussels sprouts are in season now—from late fall through winter. If you can get them on the stalk —perfecto! (The plant on which brussels sprouts grow resembles a little palm tree topped with cabbage leaves—with brussels sprouts sticking out of the “trunk”! I’m not making this up; see this picture at allotment.org.uk.) Regardless of whether they’re on the stalk, look for heavy, green, tightly closed sprouts without yellowing or blemishes. Store them in your crisper drawer until you’re ready to eat them. If you can, choose sprouts of uniform size for even cooking; I like them 1” – 1¼” in diameter.
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Sprouts for Skeptics I: Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts
This is an adaptation of Annie Connolly’s recipe (which I made for Thanksgiving), modified to speed cooking time. The sprouts come out with lightly caramelized outer leaves and cut edges wonderfully browned.
Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Author: Lee
Recipe type: Side
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 1 pound brussels sprouts (about 45 sprouts, 1” – 1¼” in diameter)
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375F
- Wash and trim sprouts, removing any blemished leaves. Cut sprouts in half vertically.
- Mix balsamic vinegar, honey, and maple syrup in a small bowl. Add olive oil and stir vigorously with a fork to combine. Toss the mixture with the sprouts in a medium bowl until sprouts are evenly coated.
- Arrange sprouts, cut side down, on a lightly oiled baking sheet or roasting pan. (If using a baking sheet, cover it with aluminum foil first for quick cleanup.) Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
- Roast for 20 minutes, stirring the sprouts after 10 minutes to prevent sticking. Watch sprouts carefully during the last 2 minutes of cooking; you want the tops to get lightly browned, but not burned.
- Voila: disappearing brussels sprouts!
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Sprouts for Skeptics II: Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Fresh Lemon
I adapted this recipe from Catherine McCord’s recipe on WholeLiving.com. The original recipe calls for poppy seeds, which I omitted because the idea of lemon-poppy seed brussels sprouts seemed a little too reminiscent of muffins for my tastes. Regardless, these shredded sprouts come out wonderfully crisp-tender, with a sunshiny lemon flavor that sings without overpowering. These sprouts would be incredible with broiled or fried fish, although I personally think they might outshine the “main” dish.
Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Lemon
Author: Lee
Recipe type: Side
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 1 pound brussels sprouts (about 45 sprouts, 1” – 1¼” in diameter)
- 1 lemon
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
Directions
- Wash and trim sprouts, removing any blemished leaves.
- Shred the sprouts. I did this by chopping them by hand, and ended up with wide strips of sprouts that worked just fine. (I’ve heard you can shred sprouts using a food processor; I’ll update this post if I end up trying it.) The more finely you shred the sprouts, the shorter the cooking time.
- Peel three strips of lemon zest, going from the top to the bottom of the lemon each time, using a veggie peeler. (Take care to avoid the white pith.) Slice the zest thinly and set aside.
- Squeeze 1 Tbsp of juice from the lemon and toss juice with the shredded sprouts in a medium bowl.
- Heat butter and olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat, until small bubbles form. Sauté the sprouts for 3 minutes, until bright green but still crisp. Add the lemon zest, salt, pepper and garlic, and sauté for 2 more minutes.
- Pour in the broth and cook 2 minutes more, or until desired level of tenderness is reached.
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I'm Lee, an RD thriving on a healthy plant based diet.
I'm still a sceptic! I think it's not my fault that I hate brussel sprouts–it's in my genes (does that make me a neanderthal?):<br />http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/evolution/6019200/Scientists-discover-that-Neanderthals-hated-Brussel-sprouts.html
Yummy! Can't wait to try the second recipe!
@pablocita: Never discount the power of nurture over nature. Evolve with us and branch out a little.
The carmelization looks so good, even I might try it Lelia!
I've disliked brussels my whole life but was compelled to try this dish to give them one last chance. It was terrific – easy, quick and really delicious. And they look beautiful on the plate. Quite a hit in my house of brussels sprouts haters. Now that's an accomplishment! Thank you.
I made the second recipe last night – delicious! I definitely over-lemoned, but that's easily remedied 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Lelia, I have a question for you…for Thanksgiving I made collard greens. My recipe called for vinegar and explained that the acid was to cut the bitterness in the greens. I saw that all these recipes also have acid in lemon or vinegar form. Given that what I hate about brussels sprouts is the terrible bitter flavor (that becomes more pronounced when they are old, overcooked, or re-heated?),
Great question! You're absolutely right–both collards and brussels sprouts contain bitter-tasting compounds called glucosinolates (e.g. sinigrin). These compounds are actually natural pesticides; they're toxic to insects. They're likely responsible for some health benefits to humans, though. <br /><br />(For a great, science-rich explanation, see http://www.ajcn.org/content/72/6/1424