Caramelized Brussels Sprouts With Bacon and Cider

Photo Courtesy of Brad Lovejoy

I don't believe I had eaten brussels sprouts since early childhood until last week. I have always thought of them as cute little cabbages that I have no desire to eat. My brother was in Seattle for a visit and we took him to a West Seattle restaurant called Blackboard Bistro that by the way, is fantastic. The restaurant's menu consists of small plates that are meant to be shared by the whole table. I love this type of dining because you can order three or four items to really get a feel for the style of food. My brother happens to like caramelized brussels sprouts with bacon so he recommended that we order the pan fried brussels sprouts with bacon, lemon and sage to start our meal. We also ordered a beautiful salmon dish with baby potatoes and pearl onions, turkey with homemade dumplings and gnocchi with autumn pork ragout and sage. This meal was truly divine and the pan fried brussels sprouts ignited both Brad's and my interest in this vegetable. For tonight's recipe, I decided to try Caramelized Brussels Sprouts With Bacon and Cider. Welcome to my maiden voyage with these "little cabbages."

Ingredients:

1 pound brussels sprouts

4 slices smoked bacon, chopped

1/2 onion, peeled and diced

2 Tbsp butter

1 cup apple cider

1 cup chicken broth

1 Tbsp sugar (more or less depending on sweetness of cider)

salt and pepper

Bring 3 quarts water to boil in medium saucepan. Blanche brussels sprout halves in boiling water for 2 minutes, covered. Drain and rinse in cold water.

Photo Courtesy of Brad Lovejoy

Over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter in medium saute pan. Add bacon and onion. Saute until bacon is nearly cooked and onion is translucent, about 5 to 8 minutes. Push bacon and onion to side of pan and place brussels sprouts in pan in single layer, with cut side down. Leave in pan without stirring, letting them brown slightly, about 5 minutes.

Photo Courtesy of Brad Lovejoy

When they have caramelized, add cider, chicken broth and sugar. Turn heat to medium-high and bring mixture to medium boil. Cook until liquid has reduced to a glaze and brussels sprouts are cooked. If liquid reduces before brussels sprouts are tender, add additional liquid.

Taste for salt level and season with salt and pepper. Add more sugar if desired. Remove from heat and stir in remaining tablespoon of butter until incorporated into glaze.

These were nothing like the brussels sprouts we had at Blackboard Bistro but they were tasty for sure. The flavor was probably more saturated than any dish I have prepared up to this point. The bacon soaked up the sweetness of the cider and sugar, which was delicious, but it did prevent the bacon from being in the forefront. Brad suggested that perhaps the bacon should be kept separate from the brussels sprouts and cider until the liquid was fully reduced. I think this is a brilliant suggestion because the smokiness of the bacon would then shine through to balance the sweetness. Even without this slight change, we enjoyed the recipe immensely.

I served the brussels sprouts as a side dish with chicken and rice. I of course, did not eat chicken, but instead ate a Quorn meatless Chik'n Cutlet. I know I have touched on the Quorn brand of meat substitute products in the past but I am going to get on my soapbox again. This company, along with Field Roast, makes my favorite meat substitute products. If you are looking for a way to take meat out of your diet and you don't choose to depend on tofu, you should look for Quorn products in the frozen food section of your grocery store. You can also click on the link to their website to see the products they offer. As information, we highly recommend the Gruyere stuffed Chik'n Cutlets.

Recipe Source:

food.com