Brussels Sprouts Salad (Whole 30)

Good grief!!!  How did it get to be Saturday and I haven’t posted anything?  It isn’t that I haven’t been cooking.   I think the problem is most of what I have been cooking isn’t mine to share.  I was picked to help recipe test for  a cookbook that is coming out in the fall.  Since the cookbook isn’t small batch I have sooooo many leftovers.   I will share more with you when I can.  For now I will tell you it is going to be an awesome  electric pressure cooker cookbook when it comes out.

In the mean time,  I am going to tell you about another cookbook that is already out and you should have in your cookbook library.  On Sunday,  I picked up a copy of Mark Bittman’s 10th anniversary edition of How To Cook Everything Vegetarian.   My love for Mark Bittman is no secret so it was no surprise,  I love this book.  The book isn’t just a reprint of the original How To Cook Everything Vegetarian.  The majority of the recipes are new.  The recipes have also been revised to rely less on dairy and cheese to fill out the recipes  so many of them can easily be made Whole 30 compliant, which has become important to me.   As usual,  Mark Bittman’s recipes use ingredients you probably have on hand already.

I noticed two things about this book that are different from his other How To Cook Everything books.  First,  there are absolutely gorgeous food photography.  Mr.  Bittman”s other How To Cook Everything books have  line drawings.   The second thing I noticed about this book is the recipes don’t have as many variations to each recipe as the original How To Cook Everything Vegetarian does.  I think this is in line with Mark Bittman’s adoption of a simpler style of eating and in no way detracts from the loveliness of this book.  `

Brussels Sprouts Salad

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Adapted From The 10th Anniversary Edition How To Cook Everything Vegetarian

3/4 lb Brussels sprouts

salt

2 1/2 TBS olive oil

1 TBS lemon juice

1/2 small red onion

1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped

1/4 cup nuts, chopped

Using a paring knife thinly slice the Brussels sprouts.  Transfer the sprouts to a medium bowl.  Add a pinch of salt and gently work the salt through the sprouts with your hands.  Just left, separate the strands while rubbing the salt through it.   Add the olive oil, lemon juice,  red onion, cranberries, and nuts.  Mix well.   Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 6 hours.   

Roasted Nuts (Whole 30)

Lately , I find myself obsessed with Culver’s Cranberry Bacon Bleu salad.  I want it for every meal.  It’s just iceberg lettuce, bacon, chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, cranberries and ranch dressing. I am embarrassed to say I pay someone 7 dollars a salad to make it for me.   I know I could make this cheaper, better and Whole 30 compliant by making it myself.   Of course, I could change it up any way I want to.

The first thing I want to add to the salad with a textural element so I decided I wanted to add some nuts.  Being fall, I decided to try my hand at pumpkin spice roasted nuts.   Whenever, I decided to adapt a recipe, I google it and look at a bunch of similar recipes for ideas on how to proceed with mine.   I have had a major problem doing this since doing my first Whole 30.  When I google sugar-free or no sugar added, I get recipes with no cane or beet sugar but added sugars like honey, maple syrup, stevia, Splenda or other natural or artificial sugars.  It is so frustrating!!!  It’s a problem with canned goods, as well as recipes.

I guess I have to do what I have always done and find away to make it myself .  Well, actually,  Mark Bittman found a way to make sugar-free, roasted nuts.  You can use any blend of spices you like.  I used my pumpkin spice blend found here.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Adapted from a recipe by Mark Bittman

Note:  I make these in 1 cup batches because they could be a food with no breaks for me.

1 cup (about 8 ounces,)  raw, unsalted, shelled nuts of your choice

1 TBS melted Ghee

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oven to 450°F. In a small bowl, combine ghee, salt and pepper.  Add the nuts and toss to coat. . Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and add the nuts in a single layer.  Roast the nuts, shaking occasionally, until they are lightly browned, about 10 minutes.  Let the nuts cool before serving.  The nuts will crisp up as they cool.

Roasted Spiced Nuts:  Add 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of any spice mixture, like chili or curry powder, to the mix.  Toss the  nuts with the spice at the beginning.