Wednesday, March 14, 2012

What's Up With All The Brussel Sprouts Lately ?



Gawd, just looking at them makes me gag.


I thought it was me but after some discussion amongst gal pals, we all concur.

Brussels Sprouts are the new " it " veggie.

If you follow cooking blogs as I do, look to see how many of the more recent recipes and or posts are about Brussels Sprouts. Hell, it's even become a regular part of the Sunday morning pater from David Venable, QVC's giddy foodie host to go on and on and on about how much he hates them ( I hear ya David) in a clear marketing ploy to get the guest cooks to amaze him and trick him into actually swallowing them... "Will he actually like them or won't he....stayed tuned to find out next week...remember the show is on from 11 to 1 on Sundays..." ..yeah , subtle as a rash.

Because I got curious..and inundated...I did actually to a bit of reading.

Now, as I have mentioned before my late mother thought the Green Giant boiling bags were a miracle on a par with penicillin.

Fer real y'all.

Unless it was as tuber as in spud or an ear of corn, Betty routinely overcooked veggies , as she had seen her mother do...yeah.

Now, for myself, unless they are a spud, ear of corn or a salad..do not expect me to ever eat cooked veggies.

Steamed yes, blanched,,,yes,,,raw...yes..cooked..HELL NO !

I blame my mother.

Yeah.

When Brussels Sprouts are over boiled , the give off a sulphur smell that you cannot get past.

I've always felt a bit sorry for Southside when he was a baby..you see ..we didn't have a dog..

Yeah, it was mean.

But I'm still not eating them.


Ciao,


Aunty Pol

3 comments:

kleinwort said...

ROFL! Well, honey, I'm of German decent and cruciferous veggies are in our blood.

You and your gal pals are right, Brussels Sprouts are an "it" veggie. (Like pork belly has become an "it" protein... or is that fat? Whatever!)

Fortunately, I had an entire family of adult females who did justice by veggies. Since I got 'em done right early on, I love baby cabbages. (I can't stand overcooked brassica, either!!! It reeks, no matter what the particular variety!)

Found the little buggers in a tapas bar in Boulder some years back, prepared kinda like this:
http://jazzinthekitchen.wordpress.com/2012/01/23/balsamic-brussels-sprouts/

All crispy and not overdone in the slightest. I think the bar roasted 'em in a blazing oven, though, and then dressed them with the balsamic/bacon/onion. Oh, and the bar threw some roasted almonds in the mix for good measure.

Looking that up for you, I found this one, that I want to try, too:
http://www.grouprecipes.com/108191/brussel-sprouts-in-cream-sherry-bacon-sauce.html

Not surprisingly, smoked pork fat figures prominently in both. And yeah, I'm down with the pork belly fad - my fav bistro has jumped on board.

My arteries do not love me.

Karen Jo said...

To each his own. Personally, I like Brussell sprouts lightly boiled and with a dash of vinegar.

kleinwort said...

Karen Jo, my grandmom made them that way! Yummmmmm! Pure and simple!

A dash of vinegar is great with lots of brassica. I like my greens that way and add a dash of hot sauce (Endorphin Rush is my current fav - just a single drop).