Un-Yucked Brussels Sprouts

I'm a grown woman and still as disgusted by Brussels sprouts as any child. There are just some things that to this day remain, for lack of a better term, yucky.

But Brussels sprouts, like other vegetables, are good for you. I've been trying to find ways to make them more palatable. There are actually people who LOVE Brussels sprouts. Some of these people are ones I know and even love.
I still think they're weird.

Friends suggested sautéing with garlic, roasting, steaming...the more like-minded suggesting throwing them away. This was, by far, the best idea.

But one lone comrade introduced the idea of brown sugar and bacon. Well, duh. Bacon makes everything better! And maybe caramelizing and candying (is that a word?) these icky little vegetables was the one way to make them appealing.

It ALMOST worked. Brown sugar is delicious. Bacon is delicious. But Brussels sprouts still taste like dirt.

At least they looked pretty.

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Caramelized Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

by Paulette E. Fontanez May-29-2013

Sugar and bacon can help make vegetables more palatable.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound bacon
• 1/2 pound Brussels sprouts, halved
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup brown sugar

Instructions

1. Fry the bacon in a skillet. Remove to paper towel and allow to cool before chopping into half-inch pieces. Reserve 1 tablespoon of bacon drippings.2. In the same skillet with the bacon drippings, melt the butter over medium heat. Sauté the sprouts until the edges begin to blacken.3. Add in the brown sugar and chopped bacon. Mix to coat evenly. Remove from heat as soon as sugar melts completely. Serve warm.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 25 mins Yield: 2 servings

Vegan-esque Fluffy Pancakes

Ever wake up craving pancakes and bacon, only to find out you're out eggs AND bacon? It's like waking up on in a bizarro world. I don't know how I managed to allow my fridge to become devoid of these foods. And I'd promised such meal to the boyfriend, so what's a girl to do?

Vegans sometimes use soaked chia seeds as egg replacement, and that I did have. So while he slept in, I experimented...

The recipe stayed the same, but I used one tablespoon of chia seeds soaked in three tablespoons of water. Let that sit for 15-20 minutes and you get a gelatin-like substance that binds the mixture appropriately. 

Vegan-esque pancakes look like they have black freckles. I giggled while I cooked.

When the man woke up, he had breakfast! Sure, it wasn't what he was expecting, but he's a REALLY good sport. Plus, I promised him if they were really terrible, I'd take him to a decent diner for breakfast.

He ate it all, but said he prefers the original recipe. I did, at least, serve them with real butter and maple syrup.

Interesting. And passable. But I probably wouldn't make them again.