Brussels Sprouts

Sorry for my lack of posting to this blog. I'm not going to promise it'll get better in the near future. Pregnancy has left me achey, tired, and preoccupied reading baby books and (trying) to create a nursery. But I'm not giving up on my food blog! It really does motivate me to try new things and I don't want to give that up! :)

Speaking of trying new things, Food Network has been having a lot of brussels sprouts lately. It got me thinking, I don't think I've ever eaten a brussels sprout! (In fact, I didn't even know the name! I thought they were "Brussel Sprouts" and then realized when googling that there should be an "s" on "Brussels"). Ha!

I figured this would be a good recipe to try them out - onions, grease, chicken stock and bacon. Can't go wrong! The verdit? They weren't terrible, not like their reputation makes them out to be! And they are kind of adorable looking. Are they my favorite vegetable? No, not even top 10, but they weren't bad. If you have an opinion, you can leave it. I'd love to hear about your brussels sprouts experience! Sam wouldn't try them and I talked to one co-worker who pretty much said she'd rather eat feet than brussels sprouts. But like I said, not terrible, and someone's got to like them or they would stop selling them!

**Recipe courtesy of Rachel Ray.

Ingredients
3 slices bacon, chopped
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
1 shallot, chopped (I used an onion)
1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed, small spouts left whole, larger spouts halved
Salt and pepper, to your taste
1 cup chicken broth

Directions
Brown bacon in a medium skillet over medium high heat. Remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Add extra-virgin olive oil to the pan, 1 turn. Add shallots to the pan and saute 1 to 2 minutes. Add Brussels spouts and coat in oil. Season with salt and pepper. Cook Brussels sprouts 2 to 3 minutes to begin to soften, then add broth. Bring broth to a bubble, cover and reduce heat to medium low. Cook 10 minutes, until tender. Transfer sprouts to a serving dish with a slotted spoon and top with cooked bacon bits.