I will never understand why brussel sprouts get such a bad rep. Personally, brussel sprouts are my favorite vegetable. Even as a child I liked brussel sprouts. You always see characters on t.v. that would secretly feed their vegetables to the dog or hide them in a napkin. So, I think it is instilled in people to assume that brussel sprouts taste horrible. But it is just not true! I have made it my mission in life to get people to try brussel sprouts. I have not come across anyone who still hates them after trying them. Maybe if t.v. didn’t tell us that we should hate vegetables, more people would give them a chance. I love vegetables and I wish people didn’t look at eating their vegetables as a bad thing.
For Christmas this year my Mom wanted to make brussel sprouts. Kelly was concerned that no one would like them. But I assured her that they would be a hit. I think another reason people are turned off by vegetables is because of the way they are prepared. Plain steamed vegetables can be boring. My favorite way to prepare vegetables is by roasting them. I roast brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, zucchini, green beans and asparagus. Those are the go-to vegetables in my house. So, for Christmas dinner we made roasted brussel sprouts with a parmesan vinaigrette. My Aunt, Uncle, and Cousin were leery about trying the brussel sprouts. Especially my Uncle, who does not like to try new things. But, I convinced them to just try a little bit. My Aunt and Cousin both said they really liked them. My Uncle said, “They’re alright.” But then I saw him take another scoop and I knew that I had successfully converted him into a brussel sprout fan. Mission accomplished!
Here is what you'll need
Slice the stems off
Cut each one in half
Put the brussel sprouts in a ziploc bag and add a little oil
Add the vinaigrette
Sprinkle with salt and pepper
Give them a good shake! Disregard the fact that mine are double bagged. My first bag had a hole in it!
Place the brussel sprouts cut side down on a parchment lined baking sheet
Roast 20-25 minutes and sprinkle with a little more salt
If you think you hate brussel sprouts, I challenge you to give these a try!
Ingredients
1 pound brussel sprouts
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup Giada De Laurentiis parmesan garlic vinaigrette-this is available at Target
pinch of ground pepper
½ tablespoon kosher salt, separated
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the stems off of your brussel sprouts and then slice them in half. Place them in a Ziploc bag. Add the olive oil, vinaigrette, ground pepper and half of the salt to the Ziploc bag. Give it a good shake. Empty the brussel sprouts onto the pan. Turn the brussel sprouts cut side down and roast for 20 minutes. If you have really large brussel sprouts roast for 25 minutes. You want the brussel sprouts to be browned and crispy. Take them out of the oven and sprinkle with the remaining salt.
Source: A Live Love Pasta original
