Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Capers, Walnuts and Anchovies

Roasted Brussels sprouts are delicious on their own, but when we saw this recipe on the Food & Wine website (contributed by Michael Symon) we had to try it.  The sauce that is mixed into the roasted Brussels sprouts is sweet, salty, and tangy and adds amazing flavor to the vegetables.  It was so good we made it twice in one week!  You can adjust the amount of sauce you use on depending on how strong you want them to be flavored.  Any leftover sauce would also be great with cooked broccoli. 

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds brussels sprouts, halved or quartered
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large shallot, minced
• One ounce of anchovies (I used about 6 out of an oil-packed jar of anchovies)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°. In a large bowl, toss the Brussels sprouts with 3 tablespoons  olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Spread the Brussels sprouts on a large rimmed baking sheets and roast for about 45 minutes, stirring once or twice, until tender and charred in spots.

 

Toast the walnuts in a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Set aside when done.  To make the sauce, combine the remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse until well combined and emulsified.  

Mix the sauce in with the cooked Brussels sprouts and add the toasted walnuts.  Don't add all of the sauce at once- you may not need it all. 

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Roasted brussels sprouts have become one of my favorite vegetable side dishes.  They become crispy and tender melt-in-your-mouth morsels once they are browned in the oven, and of course they are healthy too which is a bonus.  There are many things you can add to them, but this recipe is very simple, just olive oil, salt, and pepper.  We had them with miso-ginger salmon and it was a delicious meal!

Ingredients:

Brussels sprouts (we used about 1.5 pounds)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 t salt (or more to taste)

1/2 t freshly ground black pepper

extra olive oil for drizzling (optional... we use our good Italian olive oil for this because it adds an extra boost of flavor)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Slice the hard end of of each Brussels sprout and slice it in half.  If there are any really small ones you can leave them whole so they all stay about the same size. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper until evenly coated.

Roast the sprouts for about 20 minutes, or until the side facing down has browned.  Stir them up and roast for an additional 20 minutes, or until they all have dark golden brown color. You may need to stir one last time and roast them for an additional 10 minutes.  Taste them to see if you need to add more salt when they are done.

As I said, these went great with our salmon, but they would also go well along side of any protein.  Enjoy!