Brussel Sprouts...You Know You Love Them!

I grew up eating corn and spinach from a can - at least that is what I remember. It was fancy to have frozen broccoli. I am not criticizing anyone or anything, but that is what I remember. We did grow carrots and other veggies from time to time. Needless to say my range of veggie eating for along time was pretty narrow. Back in teen years this changed...more fresh produce and when I moved out on my own fresh and some frozen produce was high on the list (of course I was a strict vegetarian then, so it made sense).

Even with that there were many veggies I had not tried, and might I even add a little afraid of...Brussel Sprouts was one of them! Last year Joe and I attended a Slow Food USA Eat In (I am not going into what they do, etc. here, just PLEASE check out the link !). I was thrilled with what we heard and saw at the community garden where the "Eat In" was held. After the very informative portion of the program, we were treated to a FANTASTIC potluck lunch. There were some really talented cooks there - everything was so fresh and yummy...I could eat that stuff all day.

To continue on with my ramblings...I really, really wanted Joe to try Brussel Sprouts...um, OK I really, really wanted to try Brussel Sprouts too! He had asked about them before and I was a little intimidated to make them - I had never personally done anything with them and all I could imagine was me spending hours in the kitchen to have Joe eat one (that's the rule - you must chew and swallow the "new" food before you get to say "yuck!") and walk away. 

 

He reluctantly ate one, and then looked at me and said "Those are good. Can I have more?" Seriously, if a kids asks for Brussel Sprouts or any vegetable run and grab more,

even if it is the last one.

So, I am not sure who brought the Magical Brussel Sprouts, but I thank her (or him)! Better yet, she (or he) brought a copy of the recipe - only one copy though! Luckily it is a simple recipe, and even more luckily (clearly not a grammatically correct term, but you get the picture), my friend Jenn and her family were there and she had her camera, so she snapped a photo of the recipe. Yipppeeeee! And now, I share it with you, with a big, humongous thanks to it's creator, whomever that may be (I have made some changes).

By the way...this is not complicated or fancy!

Magical Brussel Sprouts
(Oh, yeah, did I mention it is not real scientific or specific)

1.  Brussel Sprouts: Amount varies on size of group you are feeding. I started with 1 1/2 pounds.
2.  Olive Oil: Again, no measurement given.
     I drizzled about 1 Tablespoon over the sprouts, add more, sparingly, as needed.
3.  Fresh Ground Black Pepper: To taste.
4.  Salt: I used Kosher Flake Salt, sparingly
5.  Fresh Lemon Juice: again to taste. How much do you like lemony-flavor?

To Prepare:

1. Blanch your Brussel Sprouts first - I find they cook way better....Blanch by boiling water; add the Brussel Sprouts and cook for 5 minutes; immediately remove the sprouts from the hot water and submerge in ice cold water until they are no longer warm.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Slice Brussel Sprouts (or not). The first time I made this I had small sprouts, but this last time (see photo), they were huge so I quartered them. Put sprouts in a bowl and drizzle Olive Oil over them. Mix to coat the sprouts.
4. Add pepper and salt, to taste.
5. Spread sprouts evenly on a cookie sheet or roasting dish.
6. Bake until fork tender...it didn't take long, maybe 20 minutes for the little ones....just keep checking!
7. Remove from oven when ready, place in a serving bowl and toss with lemon juice (we used a lot of lemon juice...it is one of the magical liquids in our house!)

Option#1:  We also drizzle Balsamic Vinegar instead of lemon juice (Balsamic is the other magical liquid in our house).

Seriously good stuff..Joe asked for them again and again!

 
Let me know what you think? Do you have any other great Brussel Sprout ideas? Do you eat Brussel Sprouts?

P.S. As if you cannot figure it out, this is Jules above...Joe would not pose for me!  And that is a Baby Jules...so long ago it seems!