sprouts

I am a woman obsessed. Not with wedding planning (ok, a little bit with wedding planning), but with Brussels sprouts. I seriously cannot get enough of them (or champagne) lately. We're talking "I'll eat them for two plus meals a day" level obsessed.

So when I went to a local restaurant (called Lincoln) with a friend last week, and we couldn't find space at the bar during happy hour, we got a regular table. Downside? No happy hour dishes/prices. Upside? One of my favorite Brussels sprouts dishes to date, which wasn't on their happy hour menu. 

I found myself craving those same sprouts earlier this week, and nothing other than the kind I had at Lincoln would do. While on the metro home, I searched recipe after recipe to try and find something similar to the cranberry apple vinaigrette Lincoln's sprouts were tossed in. I got increasingly frustrated, and realized I wasn't going to find some magical link saying "I'm the recipe Lincoln restaurant used. Click me!"

I did, however, find this recipe for roasted butternut squash with warm cider vinaigrette. I decided that, with some work, it could be tweaked to replicate the taste I wanted. It wasn't spot on, but, it was delicious (at dinner and again as leftovers), and earned SS's "yeah, this is blog-worthy" seal of approval. 

LKTC's Brussels Sprouts with Vinaigrette

• 1/2 to 1 pound of Brussels sprouts, cut in half length-wise and tossed in olive oil
• 2 TBS pine nuts
• 2 TBS thinly sliced shallots
• 3/4 cup cran-apple juice
• 2 TBS cider vinegar
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• dash of sugar
• 1/2 C olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
2. Roast Brussels sprouts for about half an hour on a cookie sheet or in a cake pan, occassionally tossing the pan.
3. Put pine nuts in a single layer in a shallow dish. Place in the oven and shake every few minutes until pine nuts are lightly toasted. 
4. Heat a small amount of olive oil in a small saucepan. Saute shallots until soft and translucent.
5. Add the juice and vinegar, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. 
6. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the cider is reduced to about 1/4 cup. 
7. Off the heat, whisk in the mustard, sugar, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.
8. Toss sprouts, pine nuts, and vinaigrette together and serve.