Turkey Day: Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts
Today starts Thanksgiving week, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite Thanksgiving sides! Before we get started, though, a few announcements: Minneapple Eats is now on Twitter AND Instagram. Groundbreaking, I know. There are little icons on each page for those two sites, as well as Pinterest, so start following today for the requisite food porn and other foodie links one might expect from social media accounts dedicated to culinary pursuits.
Anyway, back to brass tacks here. I spent the weekend in Madison with some of my favorite foodie friends, including the culinary extraordinaire behind Wisconsin from Scratch. Needless to say, the weekend involved a lot of eating and cooking and more eating.
A focal point of the weekend was our Friendsgiving celebration, to which I brought these tasty sprouts. They were the fan favorite at Thanksgiving last year, so I figured I might make a few more Brussels sprout believers with this dish at Friendsgiving. Plus, how can you go wrong when bacon and maple syrup are involved? The ansiwer is: You can't.
Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts
Serves: 4-6 as a side
Preparation Time: 60 minutes (including prep and roasting time)
Ingredients:
2 lbs. Brussels sprouts, halved with any large woody stems removed
1/2 lb. thick-cut bacon, diced into small chunks (Tip: it's easier to cut when slightfly frozen)
maple syrup, to taste
salt, to taste
Method:
1 Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place halved Brussels sprouts on a baking sheet in a single layer. I used two pans. Set aside.
2. Set a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Start to fry bacon chunks until some of the fat has rendered out and accumulated in the pan. The bacon will not be crispy or fully cooked necsesarily, but this is okay because you'll be roasting it with the sprouts.
3. Pour bacon chunks and all the bacon grease from the pan over the brussels sprouts, evenly if you're using two baking sheets. Stir until the sprouts are well coated. Drizzle with a hearty dose of maple syrup and stir again.
3. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until the sprouts start to brown but aren't burnt. It helps to shuffle the sprouts around on the pan about halfway through the cook time to ensure even cooking. Sprinkle with a dash of salt. Give 'em a taste. If you didn't add enough maple syrup the first time, throw some more on while they're hot and stir. 'Tis the eating season afterall!
