Mindful Plate

Posted by Lisa

Mustardy Brussel Sprouts

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “We love Brussel sprouts.”  They are delicious!  We like them prepared most anyway.

I recently saw a recipe on Edible Aria (which is a fabulous food blog, if traditional and interesting food preparations are your kind of thing) for a Brussel sprout dish that used ham, cream and mustard.  I didn’t have ham on hand, so I heavily modified the recipe, but his suggestion for preparing the Brussel sprouts was a method that I hadn’t tried before and it was quite easy.  He recommends steaming the sprouts first, until they are about halfway cooked and then shocking them with cold water, trimming the outer leaves and ends and finishing the cooking preparation.  I found this method was actually easier than trimming and peeling them while they were raw, which is how I always do it.  I will still trim and peel them when raw for roasting, but anything other pan preparation will be steamed first, from now on!

This dish is creamy and rich, but also a little snappy with the stone-ground mustard and that prevents this from becoming overwhelmingly rich.

Mustardy Brussel Sprouts

inspired by a recipe on Edible Aria

printable recipe

• 2 pounds of Brussel sprouts
• 2 tablespoons butter, coconut oil, bacon grease or lard
• 2 tablespoons cream
• 1 tablespoon stone-ground mustard
• sea salt
• freshly ground pepper

Wash Brussel sprouts and place in a steamer basket.  Steam until bright green and about halfway cooked.  Remove sprouts and run under cold water to stop cooking.  Trim ends, peel outer leaves and cut any large Brussel sprouts in half for uniform cooking.

In a medium or large sauté pan, melt your fat on high.  Add Brussel sprouts and cook on high until they begin to brown.  Stir frequently during this time.  When sprouts are browned, add cream and lower heat to low.  Cover and cook a few minutes.  After a few minutes, add mustard, 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper.  Stir to combine.  You may also need to add another splash of cream if the sprouts are fairly dry now.  Cover and cook until they are fork tender.  Serve warm.

Posted by Lisa

Creamy Brussel Sprouts

I know that many people think they dislike Brussel sprouts, but they are one of our favorite fall and winter vegetables in our house.  My children beg for them; we eat them up and ask for seconds.  They taste much like cabbage with a stronger flavor.  I prepare them several different ways, but this preparation is one of the quickest and one of our favorites.

If you are getting your Brussel sprouts on the stalk, snap each sprout off.  Put the sprouts in a colander and run water over them.  Cut the base of the sprout off and remove any damaged leaves.  Your sprouts should look like clean, baby cabbages.  You can cut them in half if they are large or leave them whole.  Place trimmed sprouts in a large pan or medium sized pot.   Put about an inch of water in your pan, cover it and then place it over medium heat.  Let the water come to a boil and then cook the sprouts until they are tender.  This will be anywhere from 10-15 minutes, depending on your flame and the size of your sprouts.  When they are tender, drain the water, add one or two tablespoons of butter, a splash of cream or half and half, 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, a couple grinds of black pepper and a dash of nutmeg.  Stir or shake to coat and serve warm.