From Faith: A little chopping, a sheet pan and an oven are all you need to turn out this glorious taste treat for Thanksgiving or, in my case, for any occasion. Our show volunteer, Marian Roy, dropped this one on us and after tasting it, Chris Prosperi started making it for his customers at Metro Bis restaurant. None of us can believe how easy this is to do, and how good it is. Picture crispy bits of roasted Brussels Sprouts, shallots, garlic and, if you like, prosciutto, tossed into a roasting pan with sliced pears and olive oil. Serve it and watch it disappear, if it even makes it to the table!
Ingredients
- 1 package Brussels sprouts each one halved
- 2 pears your favorite kind, sliced, skin on or off
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 shallots chopped
- 1/2 pound prosciutto roughly chopped (optional)
- olive oil extra virgin
- salt to taste
Servings:
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Halve each Brussels Sprout, slice your favorite pears, mince peeled garlic, chop peeled shallots, chop prosciutto (if using.) Set aside.
- Pour 2 or 3 generous glugs of olive oil into the bottom of a roasting pan or baking dish. Toss in the chopped ingredients. Salt to taste. Stir to coat everything well with the oil. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until shallots are brown and crispy. Every oven is different so start checking after 20 minutes of cooking. Serve hot or at room temperature.
Thank you for your wonderful tip, show and all who are involved.,
Didn’t have pears this evening so used apples and they were sweet and delicious.
Can’t wait to try the make ahead Turkey Gravey. Anything to make my life easier on Thanksgiving. Brussel Sprouts sound wonderful also, can’t wait to make them.
Mary Lou, the make ahead gravy from Chris Prosperi is absolutely terrific, and the way he uses Ina Garten’s trick with the gravy is truly a stress-free and delicious way to go. We did it in the studio and loved it. Shortly we’ll post a quick video lesson showing you how so stay tuned here and on Facebook at Faith Middleton Food Schmooze! If you “like” us on Facebook, we’ll send you our Hot Tip Feed.
Cheers, Faith
After hearing you talk about this recipe on your show I looked it up and cooked it tonight. After 35 minutes at 400 the Brussel sprouts were still under cooked. Next time I will pre-cook the sprouts and add 3 pears instead of 2. Other than those 2 things, it tasted really good.
Dan,
I live in two places, using two different ovens. In one, everything is under-cooked, so I’ve learned to leave it in longer. Sounds like you have a game plan. So delighted you liked the flavor. Cheers, Faith
Love the salty savory vegetable with the sweetness of the pear. Used a firm pear and it cooked up beautiful, kept its shape but was still soft. A nice contrast to the crispy sprouts. A keeper.
Sheila, I, too, keep making this one, serving it either hot or room temperature. Once I left the prosciutto off, grated fresh parmigiana on top and then drizzled it with truffle oil. Wow, it was good. That is your next assignment. Eat, drink and be merry. Faith
Not only did I substitute the pear for an apple but also onion for shallot and chopped keilbasa for the prosciutto… It was fabulous. So glad I didn’t have to share it!
Eileen, well I’m impressed with your improvisation skills! Good for you, and it DOES sound delicious. I just cooked myself a steak and made a quick salad and now you’ve made me hungry all over again. Best, Faith
I made this tonight and enjoyed it. I think you can get away with using a LOT of brussels sprouts and a lot less prosciutto. I think it’s important to have a really big, heavy gauge roasting pan for stuff like this to cook evenly and not burn.
Melanie, you’ve hit on an important point. This recipe is meant to be yours…if you don’t want prosciutto, use nuts as protein, or leave it just as it is. One night, when the tray came out of the oven, I grated cheese on it and drizzled it with truffle oil. Thank you so much for your great advice! Cheers, Faith
How much does one package of Brussels sprouts weigh? Or at least please give volume if you prefer. They are sold loose in my local grocery.
I don’t mean to be negative. Love your show.
Sara, we don’t see that as a negative question in any way, though it makes me laugh because this is the problem with recipes that get passed from one person to the next like an ancient game of Telephone. I got the recipe from Marian, a home cook. She got the recipe from someone else, and no one knows how many Brussels Sprouts should be in it, as a quantity. People just shrug, when you ask them, and say, “You know…a bunch of them.” So what I do is think about how many I would buy whole to feed my guests if I were cutting them in half to roast in the oven. I hold up the bag at the market and say, hmmm…I think that’s enough…but what if it’s NOT! Then I throw in some more. (I usually buy too many that way.) If you are pulling out your hair at this point, who could blame you? This is the best I can do with this wildly imprecise recipe of no certain origin. Fingers crossed that you will roll your eyes and forgive us. Cheers! Faith
No worries. I made the recipe for Christmas dinner before reading your reply and pretty much came up with the same method you described. It was such a big hit that my daughter requested the recipe.
So happy to hear that, Sara. Happy New Year to all.
Cheers, Faith
Sorry— Have to laugh at this one, as I never measure either when cooking- it;s always by feel and eyeball. As for Brussels Sprouts, I have often made a batch and eaten the whole thing for a meal- it was so good. get mine at the store- in a container or bag depending how much I want . A quick rinse and a fast split with my chef’s knife and into a deep bowl. Next a few cloves of garlic minced or a sliced vidalia onion, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, chopped bacon if I have it Drizzle w olive oil and mix it by hand. I can tell by looking at it if it will fill the pan – 400 for about 30-35 min stir once or twice, now I can’t wait to try it with a pear or an apple.
I love listening to you and your foody friends/guests! My new daughter-in-law loves Brussels Sprouts so I will definitely make these for Thanksgiving if not before. My mother, the best cook I ever knew, rarely used a recipe. I learned from watching her so I am used to working with recipes by “feel”. Most of the time it works out just fine. Thanks for what you do!
Marie, I hope she likes them, and you’re the best to say such nice things. We’re happy to party with you any time. I hear your fearlessness — not afraid to try and make a mistake. Hooray! Cheers, Faith
I don’t get to listen all the time, but I love the show!
I decided last year that I don’t like brussel sprout. My friend convinced me to give it another try, as I love cabbage. It turned out that I don’t like cleaning them up! I got a stalk of organic one, and cleaning them took a while. But the dish was delicious, and my husband pretty much ate the whole thing for lunch!
Also I convinced my mother-in-law to cook the turkey in advance as you talked about. It’s always so stressful, and this way, she gets to enjoy the family better this year!
Miyako, I bow my head to you in happiness — that we gave you a moment of pleasure. Hope the turkey works well to ease your mother-in-law’s stress. It has made things so much easier during my family’s preparation.
Cheers, and Happy Thanksgiving!
Faith
these sprouts are absolutely super I made them last thanksgiving and again this year and in between times as well. Who ever came up with this idea deserves a gold star. PS I added a rasher of cooked, chopped up, bacon ( bacon purchased from butcher–not store packaged) . Gave the dish a little something extra.
You might gather that I love bacon, yet have never tried the bsprouts that way. I will soon thanks to you.
Cheers, Faith
Thanks so much for this recipe! This has become a regular at our house; it goes well with several types of entrees, from pork chops to Beef Provencale. It’s a keeper!
I make roasted Brussels Sprouts every week and a lot of other roasted veggies- never thought of using pears or apples but will try this one next and use garlic or onion and bacon instead of prosciutto– when done, I drizzle a little balsamic vinegar over them then close up the foil and let them steep. Even better! Can’t wait to try this recipe. what a great idea to use fruit.