Am I the only one who has always thought Brussels sprouts taste like dirty old socks? Now, I have never actually tasted said socks, but... I can imagine! In the defense of these tiny cabbage-like vegetables, I haven't tried very hard to like them. The last time I had them was when I first moved into my own house (over 10 years ago!). I was all: "Hmmm, I wonder why we never had Brussels sprouts growing up? Let's try some." So I went and bought some, boiled them for what seemed like a reasonable amount of time and ate them (no seasoning, no recipe, nothing). Dirty old socks!
Fast forward a decade and there I was typing "Brussels sprouts!" (yes with the exclamation mark) in the grocery list e-mail I was sending my husband. I had found a recipe in "The Gourmet Cookbook" (Ruth Reichl) that I thought might be worth a try. Everyone deserves a second chance, right? It was surprisingly good! To quote my husband: "Wow! We could actually serve this... to guests!"
I modified the recipe since we didn't have cumin seeds and changed some of the proportions when quartering the recipe. Here it is:
Brussels Sprout Chiffonade (for 2 people)
-8 small Brussels sprouts, halved & cut into thin slices
-1 tbsp margarine (the original calls for butter but I'm on a dairy-free diet at the moment because of Baby E)
-1/4 tsp ground cumin
-several cranks of both salt and pepper grinder
-1/2 tbsp fresh lime juice
I mixed sprouts, cumin, salt & pepper in a small bowl. Then, I fried them in the melted margarine about 5 minutes (med-hi heat). Next, I transferred them back to the bowl, mixed in the lime juice and voilà! Super easy and delicious!
Now if only I could convince 21 month-old Coco to try them. (She's on a veggie strike right now).
*Update: Last night, my husband was made this but he didn't quarter the sauce for our 8 Brussels sprouts. It was awesome (much saucier)!
-4 tbsp margarine
-1/2 tsp ground cumin
-salt & pepper
-juice of 1 lime
He also forgot it on the stove a little longer (7-8 minutes) for a softer, less crisp sprout. I think we'll be making this version from now on!
