Lemon Honey Butter Brussels Sprouts

We LOVE Brussels sprouts in this house so I've got at least a dozen different ways I like to make them. The way I am bringing to you today is simple and delicious... suitable for a fast weeknight dinner side dish that even those who don't like Brussels sprout too much are bound to enjoy. This recipe is great for masking some of the strong flavor of the sprouts in case some of your guests aren't so keen on them.

How do you like to prepare Brussels sprouts?


Lemon Honey Butter Brussels Sprouts

Ingredients:
2 Pounds Brussels sprouts prepared by steaming or roasting (see directions below)

For the sauce:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

To steam the sprouts:

Bring 1/2 inch salted water to boil in a large frying pan. Add Brussels sprouts, cover, and cook until sprouts are *JUST* tender and water has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Please don't overcook them or they tend to get bitter.

To roast the sprouts use the directions here:

http://kitchengirljo.blogspot.com/2008/09/oven-roasted-brussles-sprouts.html

While the sprouts are cooking, prepare the sauce by whisking together the melted butter, honey, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Set aside. Once the sprouts are cooked, toss them in the sauce and serve immediately.

Makes about 6 servings.

Chicken Orzo Salad

It's kind of hard for me to call this one a recipe... it's more of an idea or suggestion because you could add so many different ingredients to adjust it to your families tastes and preferences. Still, this is one of my FAVORITE summer dinners because it's fast, easy, cool and can use up a myriad of leftovers!

The salad you see pictured above was just that... a concoction that was born of my wanting to clean out the refrigerator. A little of this and a little of that and I ended up with a really delicious salad to feed the family.

For this version I used:

16 oz Box orzo pasta- prepared according to package directions.
3 Cups leftover roasted chicken, chopped
4 Hard boiled eggs, chopped
2 Medium red bell peppers, chopped
1 Cup blanched fresh peas (just barely cooked frozen would work in a pinch)
1 Bunch green onions, chopped
1 Small red onion, chopped
3 Ribs celery, chopped
1 Container whole grape tomatoes

For the dressing:

2-3 Cups mayonnaise
2-3 Tablespoons lemon juice
Bunch cilantro, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

We like our salads very creamy, so I used a good bit of mayo... you can tailor the amount to your liking.

I hope you'll try this "fridge cleaner" yourself and see what you come up with! Change up the shape of pasta or the type of meat and vegetables. A prepared dressing could substitute for the mayo or even leftover plain white rice for the pasta. Add some diced cheese for something different. So many possibilities!

Oldie but Goodie: Zuppa Toscana

While I've never had it, apparently this soup is supposed to be very similar to a soup that a well known Italian chain restaurant serves. Having 3 children and a limited budget, we don't go out to dinner much, so I can't vouch for how close this soup is or isn't to that one. Nevertheless... I adored this soup! So much so that I made it once for the whole family and then made it again so that I could eat it for lunch for several days. It's been almost a week since I finished up that last batch and believe it or not... I'm craving it *again*!

I hope you'll try this one and let me know if you go as crazy for it as I did! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 and 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
12 oz package thick sliced bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large onion, diced
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
2 to 3- 26 oz cartons chicken cooking stock
6 large potatoes, cubed
1 cup heavy cream
6 oz bag baby fresh spinach

Method:
1. Cook the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crumbly, browned, and no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. Cook the bacon in the same Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain, leaving a few tablespoons of drippings with the bacon in the bottom of the Dutch oven. Stir in the onions and garlic; cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

3. Pour the chicken stock into the Dutch oven with the bacon and onion mixture; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and the cooked sausage; heat through. Mix the spinach into the soup just before serving.

Makes 6-8 servings




Kitchen Notes:
~ The second time I made the soup I added an additional 6 oz bag of baby spinach... because I love spinach and I thought it was excellent. When I added the extra spinach I wanted it a bit more "soupy", which is why I added more stock. If you make the recipe according to the recipe above, 2 cartons of chicken stock will be fine.

~The original recipe calls for only 4 slices of bacon... but we love bacon in this house so I used the whole package. Don't feel you need to be as gluttonous if you'd rather not. Even 4 slices of bacon would have been enough to flavor the soup, I simply wanted MORE!

~ The original recipe calls for heavy cream and the first time I made it that way and it was delicious... however, the second time I used fat free half and half and it was just as good! (Saved a few calories so I could have all that bacon and feel a little less guilt!)

~I like this soup with a spicy kick... so I used both hot Italian sausage AND the red pepper flakes. If you prefer, you could use hot sausage and omit the red pepper flakes.

~This soup freezes well!

Note: I disclose that my re-post was created as part of the Denny's and Foodbuzz BACONALIA challenge and is an entry for a chance to win.