Foodie Friday: Can Brussels Sprouts Be Tasty?

When it comes to vegetables, Mr. JC is much pickier than I am. Broccoli, green beans, spinach, and asparagus are in a weekly rotation at our house, and I’ve gotten pretty bored with those steamed greens. When I saw Brussels sprouts on sale recently, I thought I’d give them a try. Everyone seems to hate those tiny cabbage-like vegetables, and I guess my parents do, too, because they were never served for dinner. My husband hates them, but I ignored that fact. Nice, right?

The recipe I made for a recent Sunday dinner is based on this one by Bobby Flay, but I changed it up quite a bit (including the number of servings).

Ingredients:

Half of 1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1″ pieces
9oz fresh Brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed and halved
1 small yellow onion, sliced thin
3 slices of bacon, sliced into small pieces and trimmed of excess fat
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp lemon juice (or to taste)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet. Cook the bacon until crispy, then remove bacon and set aside on a paper towel. Add the onions to the hot pan and cook until soft. Add the sprouts and squash. Sprinkle mixture with salt and pepper to taste, and toss to coat. Put skillet in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, until vegetables are tender and lightly browned. Remove from oven. Add bacon bits. Stir in butter and lemon juice until butter has melted. Makes about 3 servings.

Bobby’s original recipe calls for potatoes instead of squash, but I really liked how the sweet squash mellowed out the bitter sprouts. The roasted veggies were the perfect complement to the main course of maple-glazed salmon.

• January 7, 2011
• cook
• 4 comments