Hayden Sprouts

Hayden Sprouts

Note from B:  Received this nice note and great recipe in the mail this morning from Carl H., so we made his Hayden Sprouts for dinner tonight.  They were excellent!  Highly recommend you try this technique!

Barb:

Wonderful to see you and Tom at the Cuse* yesterday. It was so exciting that you got to make a star turn that same morning in the local rag.** It was my first inkling of your not-so-secret second life. Please excuse my ignorance.

I mentioned a remarkable recipe for brussel sprouts. It has become a staple at our house. It is insanely simple, but scary because it takes great trust to cook any vegetable at 500 degrees. And, of course, it is something I cribbed, not something I created. Plaudits go the Nov/Dec 2011 issue of Cook's Illustrated.

In short, here's the deal:

Halve along the long axis (not crosswise) 2-2.5 lbs of brussel sprouts (try to select spouts of similar size @ 1.5 inches long). The outer leaves should fall off in the process, but trim enough to get to the fresh and firm leaves. Toss the sprouts in a large bowl with 3 tbs. olive oil, 1 tbs. water, salt and pepper until all are well coated. Transfer to a rimmed, non-stick baking sheet, flat-side down. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and roast for 10 minutes. Remove foil and continue to cook 10-12 minutes longer until the sprouts are tender and browned. Season to taste. Done.

BTW, without going into an extended explanation, the secret is the tablespoon of water.

Hope you like it.

All the best,

Carl

Footnotes by B:
*  [Syracuse vs. Connecticut Basketball game]
** [The Star - Gazette had a front page article on supporting local foods yesterday, and I was quoted.]