Brussels Sprouts – Deep Flavour with a Crunch

Brussels Sprouts are another one of those foods that most people absolutely dread.  Boiled brussel sprouts are unappealing, and frankly the smell while they cook doesn’t help.  But they are a healthy food, and when cooked properly are a delight.  Of course, that means roasting them!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Crunchy Topping
adapted from ‘Sprouting Up’ page 57, Fine Cooking Magazine, December 2007

Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (you could use veg oil also) + 1 tbsp
2 tbs Dijon mustard
1tsp Worcestershire sauce
2lb Brussels sprouts
1tbsp butter
1 cup coarse fresh breadcrumbs
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 400°F or around 200°C.  Get out two baking sheets and line with foil.
2. Prep your Brussels sprouts.  This means pulling off the outer darker leaves, cutting off the end and cutting it into quarters.  Quarters is important otherwise it won’t cook properly.
2. In a large bowl mix together the oil, mustard and Worcestershire sauce.  You can add salt and pepper here if you want.
3. Add the Brussels sprouts and toss around to make sure they are evenly coated.
4. Spread on to the baking sheets trying to get them all flat on the sheets.
5. Roast until the sprouts are just tender and the outer leaves are a bit brown.  This will be 20-25 minutes.  You don’t have to turn half way through if you don’t want to.
6. While the sprouts are in the oven make the crumb topping.  I usually make fresh breadcrumbs by just whizzing some bread in a food processor.   Heat up 1tbsp oil and butter in a pan.  When the butter stops foaming add your breadcrumbs and toss around in the oil/butter mixture.
7. Add your walnut pieces to this mixture.
8. Keep tossing the bread and walnuts until it starts to sound scratchy on the bottom of the frying pan.  This will be about 5 minutes.
9. If the crumbs look a bit saturated in oil you can put the mixture on a paper towel to soak it up.  Otherwise pour it on top of the cooked sprouts.
10. Serve up sprouts to rave reviews!

Tips: I recently made this for thanksgiving.  I cooked the sprouts and made the crumb mixture before the guests even arrived.  When we were ready to have dinner I just popped it back into the oven to heat up and poured the crumb mixture over once it was warm enough.