Back to Blog Roll

Friday, March 25, 2016

Bangin' (Bacon) Brussels Sprout Salad. (VEGAN and CARNIVOROUS options!)

Bangin’ (Bacon) Brussels Sprout Salad…VEGAN and CARNIVOROUS options!

This is a really easy, cheap, and delicious way to get a heaping helping of vegetables onto your plate and into the pickiest of eater’s belly.  Truly, it is a great recipe for people who do and do not love vegetables alike!

It’s also a great recipe for newbie cooks to practice cooking with intuition.  Honestly, when preparing this piece I had to measure everything out for the first time!  But what I would recommend is to have some fun…feel your food, do taste tests, and make this recipe your own!  You can use the recipe to exact measurements, or, you can simply use this as a guide.

Simple, inexpensive and readily available ingredients you can even find at the Shop 'n Save in Millvale!


What you’ll need:

A magic bullet or a blender.  (Surely you could use a whisk if this isn’t available to you!)

16 oz of Brussels sprouts.  (Frozen is easy and convenient, but if you really want to make a statement, use fresh Brussels sprouts!)

¼ Cup Red Wine Vinegar.

¼ Cup of Maple Syrup.

½ Cup of Dried Cranberries.

5 Slices of thick Bacon. (OPTIONAL!!  Vegans: Relax…the recipe is still delicious without the bacon!)

½ Cup of Olive Oil. (Carnivores: Save your bacon grease.  If the bacon doesn’t produce enough grease, add a little olive oil as needed.)

¾ Cup of Cashews.  (Carnivores: Be sure the cashews are unsalted.  Vegans: Salted cashews will be fine in your recipe!)

4 table spoons of mustard. (Brown, yellow, or both!)

Learn what your hand full equates to and practice "eye-balling"
measurements with this recipe!
Again, practice using creativity and intuition if you’re still learning how to be playful in the kitchen.  Walnuts and dried prunes lightly chopped are also a delicious option.  Remember there are plenty of options for dried fruit, nuts, and proteins.  You can skip the bacon, but maybe you’ll add nutritional yeast or Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top!

First, clean and wash your Brussels sprouts and steam/boil them.  If you are using bacon, start to fry the bacon.

Meanwhile, grab a big bowl in which you will combine all the ingredients.  Add your cashews and cranberries.  I don’t actually chop the cashews, but instead I grab a small handful and give them a squeeze to break them up.  This is again a nice way to feel what  about a cup feels like, so next time you can save a dish and just feel how much you need.

If you are using bacon, save the grease and set the bacon aside.  If not, simply use olive oil!  I feel that both methods are delicious! 

In the magic bullet or blender, add the oil of your choice, red wine vinegar, maple syrup, and mustard.  In this recipe I used two tablespoons of brown mustard and two tablespoons of yellow mustard.  Blend all the ingredients thoroughly! 

This is one little side dish with a lot of personality!
Drain the Brussels sprouts.  Chop up the bacon.  Add to the large mixing bowl with the cashews and dried cranberries.

Drizzle the mustard vinaigrette over the Brussels sprouts and stir up nicely with a wooden spoon.

Enjoy!!

If you feel there is too much dressing on the salad, throw it on the stove and heat to simmer extra liquid off.  If you need a little extra, add a splash of oil or vinegar to your magic bullet, spin, and mix the extra liquid into your dish!

Be sure to find some gratitude before you eat your meal.  We are lucky to have access to delicious food, have the space to be creative with what we eat, and the power to choose what we put inside our bodies. 


1 comment :

  1. This was a delicious recipe! I made a whole lot of this and ate it sometimes cold and sometimes heated. Both ways were great! Thank you!!!

    ReplyDelete

© 2016 TheTerribleYogi.com
All rights reserved