Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Brussels Sprouts

Some veggies really get a bad rep. Even the most faithful veggie lover may still furrow their brow when they find a pile of certain intimidating greens on their plate. For me, the list of scary veggies has included Brussels Sprouts.

I wanted to like them. I really really did. I wanted things to work out between us. I thought maybe I just needed to spice things up. So I tried adding garlic and onion. But there was still no connection. I even stooped so low as to buy them precooked, frozen, and covered in a delicious cream-butter-cheese sauce. That did the trick...but it ended up being just a one night stand. I still couldn't commit. I thought maybe we needed to get to know each other better. So I did the Vegetable World equivalent of Facebook Stalking and searched for them on Wikipedia.

After finding out this cute little cabbage was named for the capital city of Belgium, I also discovered I was spelling it wrong. It's Brussels Sprouts. Not Brussel Sprouts. Maybe there was more to these little guys than meets the eye. I decided to give us one more chance.

I found a recipe that looked pretty amazing. And it was super simple and healthy.

I used 4 cups of Brussels Sprouts and 2 tbsp basting oil

(My grocery store sells this yummy oil that has garlic and herbs in it. But you can make your own with oil and herbs.)










I washed, trimmed, and quartered them...then put them on a baking sheet.














After coating them with 2 tbsp basting oil, I put them in a 350° oven. After 30 minutes, I pulled out this.














I may have cooked them too long, but the charred leaves were my favorite part! I added them to my plate of grilled chicken and red potato.














They were good! So good in fact, we are going steady. They will definitely be on my shopping list again Friday night!

Makes 4 servings. PointsPlus: 2 pt

2 comments:

  1. Brussels sprouts aren't bad, I really like them. I've never had them in the oven, and I've been meaning to try it - now I'll just have to, having seen this. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. They are amazing with charred bits on them! I do the same, and then add a little salt and lemon pepper-- sometimes a squeeze of lemon. Try your broccoli this same way, and you will be ready to just eat veggies for the rest of your life ;-)

    ReplyDelete

Here's your chance to address that Pink Elephant in the room....