When in Brussels

To put it mildly, Steve is a picky eater.  Here are some examples of foods he does not like: potatoes, mushrooms, cucumber, tomatoes, zucchini, eggs, and peppers.  Needless to say, I was shocked to learn that he enjoys Brussels sprouts of all things, particularly a recipe his mom makes for Brussels sprouts with prosciutto or capicola.  We made it recently, slightly modified to feed the two of us, rather than a crowd, and it was quite tasty.

First, we picked out some nice sprouts at the grocery store, washed them up, trimmed the ends, and peeled off the outer leaves.  No fancy measuring, we just guessed about how much each of us would want to eat.  Next, we dropped the sprouts in a pot of boiling water, liberally seasoned.  The sprouts should boil until just tender, maybe 7-10 minutes.  Don’t let them go too far because they will get a bit of additional cooking time with the sauce. 

Speaking of sauce, while the sprouts are boiling away, you can get started working on it.  Melt a generous amount of butter in a skillet.  Throw in a couple of chopped scallions (green onions) and let them saute until tender.  Tip: if you are worried about burning the butter, add a bit of olive oil to the skillet.  It has a higher smoke point than butter, so you’ll be less likely to burn the sauce.  Chop up some prosciutto or capicola and add that to the mix.  We used capicola this time, which Steve likes because it’s got some spice to it.  Let that saute for a bit until the meat gets a bit brown. 

Add your well-drained sprouts to the skillet and stir to evenly combine.  Season with salt and pepper.  I like to let the sprouts cook a while in the skillet  so they’ll get some browned crispy bits on the outside, but you can cook to your taste.  Enjoy!

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