Roasted Brussels Sprouts.

15 November 2012

Dave will eat anything.  Anything.  I once saw him order and eat an appetizer of beef carpaccio.  Do you know what that is?  That right there is raw freaking meat, peeps.  Barf.  My point is, there are few things he won’t eat, but that doesn’t mean that he likes everything either. 

Vegetables are a sore subject because anything mushy he hates.  That part is fine, I hate mushy, stewed, overcooked anything too.  The part that is hard, is convincing him to try something he ‘hates’ prepared differently.  It happened with zucchini until we grilled it.  It happened with carrots until we roasted them.  It happened with mushrooms until we sautéed them into a caramelized masterpiece. 

Oh hi, Brussels sprouts, you’re next… I am going to cook you and make you delicious just to convince him that he doesn’t hate you.

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You will need:

  • 1 pound of fresh Brussels sprouts
  • 2 teaspoons of bacon grease {if you don’t have this in your fridge, don’t fret, just add a little more olive oil}
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons of honey
  • 1 Tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon of spice mix {I used Weber KickN’ Chicken, it is my fave}
  • 1 teaspoon of sea salt {or 1/2 t of table salt}

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Wash and cut your Brussels sprouts into quarters, cutting the hard rough stem end off and removing any discolored or damaged leaves from the outside.  Throw them all in a baking dish or a cookie sheet with sides, do not over crowd.

OK, so we keep bacon grease in the fridge, saved in a glass jar after cooking it.  I don’t know if that makes us weird or if everyone does this.  I’ve never asked around, but I’m going to.  If you don’t do this, you are more than welcome to use just a little more olive oil, but I think the bacon grease gives it a good little kick of flavor. 

Anywho, you will melt 2 teaspoons of this in the microwave.  Then add the olive oil, balsamic, honey, and spice mix.  Mix all of this together with a fork, or shake it together in a jar if you’d like.  Pour over the top of the Brussels sprouts and use your hands to make sure everything is mixed and coated properly.  Then, sprinkle the sea salt on top.

Turn the oven down to 400 degrees and pop your tray in the oven.  Roast for 25 minutes, giving a shake of the pan half way through.  

Everything will be all brown and caramelized and so full of roasty goodness that even a Davester would like them.  I like mine with mashed potatoes and grilled pork.

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And I have to know, is there bacon grease in your fridge?

9 comments:

Kelly said...

Good Luck, I wish J wasn't so picky. If he had it his way we'd be doing a spaghetti/sloppy joe rotation for the rest of his life! I've never had brussel sprouts but think I might hate them, so I've steered clear. lol

Anonymous said...

I roast mine with thick cut bacon!!!

Sue said...

These look so yummy, and, yes, I do have a jar of bacon grease in my fridge. My husband thought it was the weirdest thing when we were first married.

Kelly @ turned UP to ELEVEN! said...

This sounds so tasty - I've never heard of using the honey. I usually just toss the sprouts with olive oil, salt n' pepper and chop up some garlic to toss in the mix (not always I fear it will get bitter with the cooking time).

My hubby loves these. I hated sprouts until our honeymoon. I've been on a kick to try new things and they were on my plate for one meal in Mexico... yeah, I thought that was odd too.

Anyhoo - I know I hate them steamed like my mom used to make so I tried them roasted and LOVED them.

I want to try this recipe for sure. Now... I just have to figure out what to make bacon for so I can have some grease.

Samantha @ 24 to 30 said...

This looks delicious! My family is addicted to brussel sprouts...when I make the frozen kind I usually make 4 bags at once for all of us! I am definitely going to try this for Thanksgiving. I don't save bacon grease - we usually cook our bacon outside on the grill because I have a tendency to overcook it and then the entire house smells like burned bacon.

SnoopyMeg said...

Flynn Gregg LOVES Brussel sprouts, chef Flynn makes them similar! Yum,yum!

Unknown said...

Those look delicious, Michelle! Perhaps I will make those for Thanksgiving! I hope my mom doesn't mind me commandeering her kitchen...

Shannon said...

I'm a life long brussel sprout lover! I usually quarter mine and roast them with bacon and almonds. I can't wait to try these! And btw, I LOVE carpacio and tartare-can we still be friends?

yourfriendrobin said...

Those look heavenly!

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