I’m going to take a wild guess and say Brussels sprouts were probably the last thing on your plate as a kid. Or at least that’s how I used to operate. If mine weren’t doused in cheese, I wanted nothing to do with those little green monsters. They’re not any cuter to look at than their big brother Cabbage, and no one is excited to see them at the dinner table.
Now that I’m older, wiser, and have a wider palate, I’ve learned to experiment with veggies to make them taste less gross, er bland. If you follow my blog regularly, be it here or on Instagram, you might have noticed that I LOVE cauliflower. However, I think 2019 needs a new, versatile veggie to star in our kitchen’s repertoire. Surprise, surprise—it’s Brussels sprouts!
Aside from lots of Vitamin C, Brussels sprouts also contain Vitamin K (necessary for healthy blood clotting), belly-filling fiber and potassium, which regulates fluid balance in the body. Fun fact for ya, that’s why bananas are one of the best hangover foods—they’re potassium powerhouses! Maybe “best hangover foods” will make it on FBTF one of these days…. ANYHOW… Brussels sprouts are low in calories too, so you can go heavier in terms of what you add to them. And that, ladies and gentlemen, brings us to our recipes for today!!
Bacon Cheddar & Ranch Brussels Sprouts
The inspiration for these drool-worthy beauties came from my potato skins craving the other night.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, line a cookie sheet with foil and cover with nonstick spray.
- Slice each (rinsed!) Brussel sprout in half, then slice each half again the same way, creating little discs. Line them close together on the cookie sheet.
- Sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder. I added a touch of cayenne to fake a chipotle ranch flavor 😉
- Shower all that green with shredded cheddar (or whatever blend you want). And bacon bits. But you hopefully wouldn’t forget that part.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or so… don’t let the cheese burn.
- Drizzle on the ranch and devour immediately!
General Tso’s Sprouts with Nut Crunch Topping
I know this sounds weird, but once you taste how the sauce draws out the natural sweetness of the nuts and sprouts… Mmmmm.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees, line a cookie sheet with foil and cover with nonstick spray.
- Rinse Brussels sprouts and cut (vertically) into quarters. Place on cookie sheet.
- Spoon General Tso’s sauce over each quarter, then use your finger to spread it on all sides.
- Finely chop a small handful of roasted nuts (peanuts or cashews work best) and sprinkle them on top of the sprouts.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
Shredded Brussels sprouts… on anything!
It’s hard to go wrong here; add them to salads, stir fries, etc.
I don’t know about other grocery stores, but the ones near me in Queens sell containers of pre-shredded sprouts in the refrigerated produce section. For the photo above (sorry for the low quality btw, I had to screenshot from my personal Instagram), I pan-fried the bacon bits and Brussels sprouts together before putting them on top of my open-faced egg sandwich. I know, I love bacon. A lot. Shredded sprouts would also be a nice addition to some homemade coleslaw or a sandwich.
So there ya have it! Who knew one of the most hated vegetables among kids could actually be a fun mealtime staple? If you have any other ideas or just want to leave some good ol’ feedback, please drop a comment below!
Fit by the Fork 