Wait! Don’t go. Please. Before you say yuck and chalk this up to bad judgment on my part, give Brussels sprouts one more chance. I, too, was a skeptic. Steamed and boiled Brussels sprouts produce a reaction in me that can be compared to that of a five year old given a plate of broccoli. In short, I’ll give up dessert to avoid eating them and might just throw a temper tantrum if the issue is pressed. For years, my house was a Brussels sprout free zone.
My husband, I am embarrassed to admit, is actually a fan of Brussels sprouts in all their forms and last fall, he used all of his diplomatic powers to have our home’s embargo against sprouts lifted for one dinner. Finding myself in what was obviously a delusional state, I was contemplating granting his request and was flipping through cookbooks when I came across a recipe for pan-browned Brussels sprouts in Ruth Reichl’s The Gourmet Cookbook. The head note read that “these golden-brown nuggets are so nut-like in flavor that you could almost serve them with drinks” and that this recipe had actually made people like Brussels sprouts. At the time, I thought they might get more takers if they just stuck to encouraging people to drink while eating Brussels sprouts, but I made the recipe and, drum-roll please, was a convert.
