Do you like brussels sprouts? I used to hate them, HATE THEM, when I was a kid but nowadays I freakin’ LOVE them. I’d eat them with every dinner as a side if I could – especially when prepared like the recipe below. :)

A few months ago, Eric and I went with our friends Eric & Jackie up to Hayward, WI – hey Jackie! We ate at a small restaurant in town, idk the name – oops, that had a side of brussels sprouts on the menu. They were served up in a mini cast iron with cranberries, walnuts and gorgonzola. Is this a common thing?? If it is, I was living under a rock because I had never heard of eating sprouts with fruit & nuts. Anyway – they were SO good. Since then, Eric and I have been making some variation of those sprouts at home on the regular.

Roasting them with cranberries & nuts is an awesome side dish. I also highly recommend roasting with a few cloves of garlic and some thinly sliced onion.

The process of prepping and roasting fresh brussels takes about 25-30 mins total. If you’re in a hurry, frozen sprouts work just as well and you don’t have to blanch them before roasting – yay!. Simply toss the lil’ frozen sprouts into the skillet with whatever accouterment you wish to use, bake and devour.

Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh brussels sprouts (not on the stalk)
Salt & pepper
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup pecan or walnut halves (depending on preference)
1/4 cup feta/blue/gorgonzola cheese *optional – this recipe is obviously gluten-free, paleo, vegan, w/e without cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven and cast iron skillet to 375°F. Meanwhile, rinse and slice brussels sprouts into halves. Place in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and allow to cook for about 2 minutes. Immediately (and carefully) pour out hot water and begin running cold water over sprouts (this is basically how you blanch veggies, fyi) until they are completely cool to the touch. Then, using an oven mitt, remove skillet from oven and pour drained and cooled sprouts into the pan evenly. Sprinkle cranberries, nuts and salt & pepper on top. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes or until sprouts become tender with a fork. Serve as a side dish. PS – these are delish with some stinky gorgonzola cheese on top. Enjoy!