Poor Brussels Sprouts

‘Gross Green Lettuce Balls’

Tonight we had Thanksgiving dinner with Jeff’s side of the family.

“Can I pass you the brussels sprouts Bray?”, I asked my oldest son.

(yes…the correct term is actually brusselS with an S on the end and they really grow like in the picture. Cool hey?)

“Ew, why would I want any of those gross green lettuce ball things?”, Braden replied. — he secretly likes them though.

Like pumpkin, I did not like having to eat these when I was younger and they definitely get a bad rap with kids and adults in the flavour department. Poor brussels sprouts. Perhaps it was because we only had them plain steamed and they tasted like farts smelled or maybe it was the slightly overcooked mushy texture.

Either way, they were a no go for younger me. Now however…bring them on!

One of the best Thanksgiving side dishes I have ever had was roasted brussels sprouts with a variety of other root veg topped with balsamic vinegar walnuts and goat cheese. Maybe it was the way they were cooked or that the person used one of those Pampered Chef stoneware bakers to make it (which bake everything perfectly) but it was memorable.

Another decent method of preparing those mini cabbage-type things is to cook them slightly al dente and toss them in brown sugar, butter, salt and pepper. It’s a fairly safe and solid way to go.

I’m doing a bacon and brussels sprouts (torn apart into all the leaves) salad thing to take to my side for dinner tomorrow night. I haven’t tried this particular version and will probably add a few things but the dish was suggested to me by a friend’s young son so it must be good.

Besides being fairly versatile, brussels sprouts offer a lot of nutritional value.

They are cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy and kale. As medicalnewstoday.com puts it, “consuming cruciferous vegetables may have a range of health benefits, including decreasing the risk of certain diseases, such as heart disease and some cancers.”

Check out the entire article here https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/284765#benefits

Though you may get a bit gassy, the benefits of incorporating more brussels sprouts into your diet far outweigh the special ‘extras’.

Hoping you all had a great Thanksgiving Sunday,

-Becky