While I love my house very much, one problem it has (besides the mysterious scratching from a ghost/rodent in the middle of the night) is that no matter how many windows are open or how many fans are blowing the air just does not circulate. Which means that the smell of whatever I cook is guaranteed to linger for like four days. This is great when I am making things like apple pie biscuits and pumpkin cake, not so great when I am cooking something that smells like a shoebox full of farts. Looking at you, brussels sprouts. I love brussels sprouts about 800X as much as the average person, but let’s be real. They cannot and will not smell good. Ever. This is really just my way of saying that if you plan to go on a weeks long brussels sprout bender like I just did, light a few candles first. And if you live in the still air asylum that is the upper level of a 60 year old duplex…well, I feel your pain.
Now you really want to dive into this recipe, right? But that’s the thing, YOU DO. Because these sprouts are that good.
I know plenty of people who claim to hate brussels sprouts. Probably due to some childhood trauma of being forced to sit at the dinner table facing a plate of boiled brussels sprouts and not being allowed to get up until they finished every last limp cabbage filled bite. Whoever initially decided that brussel sprouts should be boiled or steamed has a lot of explaining to do. But I would be willing to bet that those poor survivors of brussel sprout related trauma, never ever encountered a crispy, roasted brussel sprout in their lives.
Roasting the sprouts in the oven at a super high heat (I firmly believe 425 is the magic roasting temp for all veggies) makes the outsides slightly charred, the leaves super crispy and everything taste like it just came off of a grill. Since these get a little on the spicy side and I am a sucker for any food that can be dipped, I added a creamy lemon parmesan sauce to cool things down a little bit. You can drizzle it over before serving or just serve it on the side and feel like you are eating the healthiest, sproutiest version of fries and aioli you ever had. And since it is now November, it’s definitely worth mentioning that this is begging to be on your Thanksgiving menu. You won’t even have to force everyone at the kids table to eat them all before they can have pie.
Another advantage of roasting is that any extra leaves that fall off become chip-level crispy and if I had all day to separate sprout leaves and roast them as chips I would for sure package them up, sell them and crush any kale chip competition that dares to challenge me. But I’ll save the business model for another day. For today, I’ll just roast up my 900th pan of brussels sprouts and then apologize to anyone who dares enter my cabbage smelling house.
Crispy Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Lemon Parmesan Sauce
Serves 4
| Ingredients |
- 1 lb. brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp. plain greek yogurt
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- salt, to taste
| Instructions |
- Preheat oven to 425. Place brussels sprouts on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Toss until the sprouts are evenly coated. Sprinkle with salt, garlic powder and red pepper flake and toss again. Roast 20-25 minutes until the sprouts are cooked through and are beginning to char slightly. If your sprouts are on the larger side, this may take closer to 30-35 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, yogurt, garlic, parmesan and black pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Add salt to taste.
- Serve sauce on the side or drizzle over the sprouts right before serving.