Brussel sprouts with spiced pecans
We’re a mixed bag at Thanksgiving here in Amsterdam. Hosted by an American with a sprinkling of Brits, a few Dutchies and a handful of Kiwis, the Thanksgiving tradition only began for me once I moved to the Netherlands. This year I abandoned my carrot souffle, a staple of the past few years, and created winter-spiced brussel sprouts. It’s a perfect side dish for Christmas, too! The recipe can be vegan if maple syrup is used instead of honey and the orange butter is ignored at the end.
Serves 10 as a side
- 1kg x brussel sprouts. Cut the larger ones into quarters and the smaller sprouts in half
- 1 x onion, finely diced
- 2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
- olive oil
- 1/4 cup x honey or maple syrup
- 1/4 cup x port
- 2 tsp x cinnamon
- 1 x orange
- 1 cup x pecans
- salt and pepper to season
- 50g x organic butter (optional)
Preheat oven to 230C. In a large pan, warm some olive oil and gently brown the onions and garlic. Add the brussel sprouts with a good dash of salt and pepper and cook, stirring continuously, for about 10 minutes. Transfer to a baking dish and place in the preheated oven. Cook for another 15 minutes until browned. Make sure you don’t overcook the sprouts; they should retain some bite.
Zest the orange, set the zest aside, then squeeze the juice of one half the orange into a saucepan on a low heat. Add the honey/maple syrup, port and cinnamon. Warm until well combined. Toast the pecans in a dry pan until browned. Transfer to the orange juice/port/cinnamon mixture. The mixture will bubble and pop. Take off the heat and set aside.
If you want to make the dish a bit richer, combine the zest of the orange with about 50g of slightly softened organic butter. Set aside until you’re ready to serve.
If you don’t want to use butter, stir the zest through the oven-baked sprouts. Pour over the nutty syrup mixture and the juice of the other orange half. Season well with salt and pepper and serve either warm or at room temperature. If using butter, serve the sprouts warm with a knob of orange butter melted over top.
