Everybody’s talking about Brussels sprouts lately. And I couldn’t be happier. I don’t know how many recipes I have here already, but there’s always room for more. This one’s a good addition, and would make a really nice side if you’re having guests.
The recipe came from Marie Rayner’s food blog (The English Kitchen). I lightened up her recipe just a tad. I used bacon instead of pancetta and I used just a little bit of cream rather than nearly a cup. Then, it happened that I only had fresh wheat bread, so my bread crumbs came from that, but they were just fine – it was just a little harder to tell when the crumbs were toasty brown, that’s all, because they were already brown in color. Minor problem really!
First the Brussels sprouts were cooked in lightly salted water, cooled, halved. Then I cooked a slice of thick bacon (cut up into tiny pieces) and later a small bunch of sliced almonds were browned in the bacon fat too. Then the Brussels sprouts were added in, to soak up the little tiny bit of bacon grease there was in the pan (if you use regular bacon you’ll want to pour off most of the fat). Then they’re poured into a flat gratin dish (I used a 9 inch ceramic pie plate, which was the perfect size 
for a pound of Brussels). The bread crumbs are browned in the same cooking pan with a little bit of butter until they’re lightly toasted. Cream is poured over the Brussels sprouts, then the crumbs are mixed with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and that’s sprinkled over the top of the Brussels sprouts. Bake for 18 minutes. That’s all there is to it. Easy peasy.
We had the remainder of our dinner all ready to go, so as soon as the Brussels sprouts came out of the oven, we were ready to plate everything. The cream (which I’d poured mostly on top of the cut sides of the Brussels sprouts) was almost completely absorbed into the Brussels sprouts – it was barely moist on the bottom of the dish. Thank you, Marie, for such a great recipe!
What’s GOOD: everything about these are good. The crunchy bread crumbs and cheese? Oh yum. The tender Brussels sprouts are so very tasty. The almonds also add a nice little crunch. A great recipe I’ll be making again.
What’s NOT: Well, it does take a bit more prep time than just simmering Brussels sprouts, of course, but it was well worth the effort. When we have a fairly plain protein for our dinner, I like to do something a bit more elaborate for the side dish.
printer-friendly CutePDF
Files: MasterCook 5+ and MasterCook 14 (click on link to open in MC)
* Exported from MasterCook *
Brussels Sprouts Gratin
Recipe By: Adapted from a Sophie Grigson (BBC Food) recipe by Marie Rayner (The English Kitchen) and further adapted by me.
Serving Size: 4
1 pound Brussels sprouts — trimmed
1 slice thick-sliced bacon — chopped
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons fresh bread crumbs
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese — coarsely grated
fine sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the sprouts and cook for about 4 minutes until crispy tender. Drain well and set aside.
2. In the same pan add the bacon and cook until it’s crispy. Toss in the almonds and allow them to brown lightly. Cut the Brussels sprouts in half and add them to the pan and cook them for a few minutes longer. Pour the sprout mixture in a ceramic dish just large enough for the Brussels sprouts slightly crowded together (a 9-inch ceramic pie plate works well for 1 pound). Season to taste with some salt and pepper. Stir together the cream and lemon juice and pour this on top of each Brussels sprout, if possible.
3. Melt the 2 tsp butter in the skillet and add the bread crumbs. Toss to coat and cook for a few mintues until they crisp up and turn a light golden brown. Remove from the heat and mix together with the Parmesan Cheese. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over top of the sprouts in the dish.
4. Preheat the oven to 400*F. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until the crumbs are golden brown. Serve hot. Marie noted – as with most things these are even tastier the day after and reheated!
Per Serving: 167 Calories; 11g Fat (57.5% calories from fat); 7g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 26mg Cholesterol; 162mg Sodium.