sweets in the kitchen: roasted brussels sprouts & an announcement

So I'm cheating a little bit today.  On this recipe, I mean.  I'm posting a recipe that Sweets cooked up, oh, I'd say about 2 weeks ago, when we caught our first glimpse of Brussels sprouts and couldn't leave the store without a big stalk of them, awkwardly poking from the top our reusable grocery bag. 

I'm sad that I didn't take any photos of the stalk. These puppies were the honkinest, most ginormous sprouts either of us had ever seen.  They may as well have been full-fledged cabbages hanging off that stalk.  We ended up pulling half of them off to be frozen, because we couldn't fathom that much Brussels in the short time they'd survive the higher temps of the fridge.  

At any rate, sweets turned our first Brussels sprouts into the most incredible roasted veggie dish I may have ever had.  She quartered criminis and sliced up shallot to go along with the greens, doused the whole thing in a healthy glug of olive oil, and plopped it all in the oven to brown and caramelize and become something insanely delicious.

So why, you may be asking, is this recipe cheating on my part?  Well, I'm featuring it today out of sheer lack of any other recipe to share. Sweets has informed me that I'm using her and violating some copy rite law in the process. But I've just been so busy researching and reading and getting excited about a new path my life has, rather suddenly, made a turn onto.  

I haven't been in the kitchen much at all these last few days, you see, because I've started my training to become a certified health coach!  Ahhhh!  I'm so so elated.  I've enrolled in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.  

You'll notice the banner above and to the right.  It gives me goose bumps when I look at it.  

I'm finally moving closer to my dream of a nutrition-related career, and I couldn't be happier.  I had thought about baking a cake in celebration, but I suppose Brussels sprouts are a more fitting commemoration for admission into a health-coaching program.  It all worked out in the end.

I will definitely be posting more about the program and my experiences as I move along.  I hope you all will join me for the ride. 

Cheers!  And happy October!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Mushrooms

serves 4-6

gluten-free, grain-free, vegan

** True to the nature of Sweets, this recipe does not contain exact measurements or time.  Sweets prefers a just wing-it sort of mentality, so please understand that this recipe is based on our collective recollections.

1/2 lb. or so Brussels sprouts, halved or quartered, depending on size

3 or 4 large cloves garlic, minced

2-ish shallots, sliced

a glug or two of olive oil

salt & pepper

several larger crimini mushrooms, quartered

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.  Line a 9x13" baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.

• In a large mixing bowl, toss the Brussels sprouts, garlic, and shallots with a generous amount of olive oil (you want the veggies to be coated with, but not swimming in oil).  Season with salt and pepper and toss again.

• Pour veggies into lined baking dish, and put in the oven.  Roast veggies for about 12 - 15 minutes, remove dish from oven, and add mushrooms.  Toss gently with a wooden spoon to coat mushrooms in oil, and return dish to the oven.  Roast an additional 10 - 15 minutes, or until Brussels sprouts are desired tenderness.

• Remove from oven, cool slightly and serve.  

** Keep in mind that your sprouts will cook more once removed from the oven.  Don't let them get mushy!