Brussels sprouts are my favorite winter vegetable.  Roasted in the oven with olive oil, salt and pepper, those mini cabbages become soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside.  I love the extra crispy outer layers of the sprouts that fall off and get toasted, coated in salt.  In the fall I often roast Brussels sprouts along with cauliflower, sweet potatoes and squash and top them with pomegranate vinaigrette, but I love the classic combination of Brussels sprouts and bacon.  I recently ate a winter salad with warm bacon vinaigrette but I didn’t love the wilted greens.  I figured a sturdy Brussels sprout could stand up to a warm sauce and bacon would be a natural complement to my beloved sprouts.

What I used to make it:

about a ½ lb Brussels sprouts
Kosher salt
ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
6 pieces of bacon, cut into small pieces
2 tbls bacon drippings
2 tbls apple cider vinegar
½ teas honey
½ teas Dijon mustard

How I made it:

I roasted the Brussels sprouts like I mentioned above, after rinsing and cutting in half on a foil lined baking sheet and tossed with olive oil, Kosher salt and pepper in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 mins.

I cooked the bacon pieces in a cast iron skillet and removed the bacon once cooked onto a paper towel lined plate.  In the cast iron skillet, to the remaining bacon drippings (about 2 tbls) I added the apple cider vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, seasoned with salt and pepper and whisked until combined and heated through over low to med-low heat.  I topped the roasted Brussels sprouts with the vinaigrette and the cooked bacon.