Brussels Sprout Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

I talked about this brussels sprout salad that my friend Katie and I had at Hub 51 in Chicago in my very first blog post. For some reason, I thought to Google it the other day to see if there was a recipe for it online. Sure enough, I found it here and I made it on Friday night. I plan on turning a lot of people into brussels sprout lovers with this recipe. It is that good.

I had to adapt the vinaigrette recipe slightly based on what I had (like apple cider instead of apple juice concentrate and figs instead of dates). I should also note that the vinaigrette recipe makes over two cups of dressing. It’s a really great dressing though, so it’s not a bad idea to make a lot.

Brussels Sprout Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

For Mustard Vinaigrette:
2 Tbsp whole grain mustard
6 Tbsp white wine vinegar
3 ½ Tbsp sugar
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. ground black pepper
½ c. apple cider
2 c. Canola oil

For Brussels Sprout Salad:
2 ½ cups Brussels sprouts
2 Tbsp dried cranberries
2 Tbsp slivered almonds
2 Tbsp dried figs
2 Tbsp manchego cheese, grated
1 Tbsp parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup Mustard Vinaigrette (see recipe above)

Instructions:

For Mustard Vinaigrette:
In a mixing bowl, whisk together mustard, vinegar, sugar, garlic, salt, pepper and apple cider. Slowly whisk in the oil.

For Brussels Sprout Salad:
Trim the leaves off around the stem of the Brussels sprouts and then peel apart each leaf. Bring 6 cups of water to boil. Place peeled Brussels sprouts in boiling water for 6 seconds (really, just 6 seconds). Quickly remove and place in ice water. When cooled, place on a tray to dry. In a mixing bowl, add the Brussels sprouts, dried cranberries, almonds, and figs. Toss with mustard vinaigrette. Place in a salad bowl and top with manchego and parmesan.


Aside from being delicious, it’s so bright and colorful. I think it might even be a new addition to our Thanksgiving dinner table!

BBQ Fare

Barbeque season has officially begun and I couldn’t be happier about it. My friend Matty had a Memorial Day BBQ last weekend and it was the perfect opportunity to make some awesome side dishes. My roommate Katie and I decided to make grilled balsamic vegetables and cold sesame noodles.

Sesame Noodles
This recipe is slightly adapted from the Uncommon Gourmet, an extremely reliable cookbook that my family has been using for a long, long time. I found that the noodles need a little more sauce than the recipe calls for and I added some sriracha for some spice. I also put in some snap peas for some color and crunch.

Ingredients
2 lbs. linguini
¾ c. sesame oil
¾ c. soy sauce
4 ½ tsp. sugar
¾ tsp. pepper
2 cloves of garlic, minced
¾ c. chopped scallions
4 tbsp. sesame seeds, toasted
Sriracha, to taste
1 c. snap peas


Directions
1. Cut the snap peas in half and very briefly blanch for about 30 seconds.
2. Combine the sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar, pepper, garlic, scallions, and sesame seeds in a large bowl.
3. Cook and drain the pasta.
4. Pour the hot pasta over the sauce and toss well. Add Sriracha to taste.
5. Refrigerate and add the snap peas.


Grilled Balsamic Vegetables
I make this balsamic vinaigrette fairly often for salads, so I thought it would be delicious if I brushed it on some vegetables and grilled them. Since the BBQ was at a friend’s house, we just grilled the veggies at home and ate them at room temperature at the BBQ.

Ingredients
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. honey
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 small shallot, minced
½ tsp. dried oregano
¼ c. balsamic vinegar
¾ c. extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Assorted vegetables – we used 2 small yellow squashes, 2 small zucchinis, 2 small eggplants, 2 portabella mushrooms, and a bunch of asparagus.


Directions
1. Combine the Dijon, honey, garlic, shallot, and oregano in a medium bowl.
2. Stir in the balsamic and then slowly whisk in the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.


3. Cut the vegetables into ¼- ½ inch slices and brush with the vinaigrette.
4. Grill on medium-high until the vegetables are cooked.

Note: We also had some leftover watermelon that needed using, so we threw it on the grill and added it to our platter.


Both sides were huge hits; at first, we thought that we had brought too much food, but everything got devoured!

Greek Couscous Salad with Grilled Flank Steak

While it may not feel like it in Chicago quite yet, SPRING is officially here. Among other things, this means that it’s time to bring on the warm weather food!

I like to get a lot of my cooking for the week done on Sunday night because – despite what it might seem like – I don’t have that much time on my hands :). I usually try to make something somewhat-healthy that I can bring to work for lunch throughout the week. This week, in honor of the start of Spring, I made a simple Greek couscous salad with some grilled flank steak.

Ingredients:

Dressing/Steak Marinade
½ c. extra virgin olive oil
¾ c. red wine vinegar
Juice of 2 lemons
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
¼ of a small onion, grated
½ tsp. dried oregano
½ tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. honey
Salt and pepper, to taste

Salad
1 c. dry couscous (I used whole wheat, but regular would work too)
Chicken broth (~1 ½ c. to cook the couscous)
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
½ of a large cucumber, chopped
½ c. fresh mint leaves, chopped
½ c. crumbled feta cheese
½ - ¾ c. dressing (above)

Steak
1.5 lbs. flank steak
½ - ¾ c. steak marinade (above)
Salt and pepper, to taste


Directions

1. Whisk together all of the dressing/marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
2. Marinade the steak in ½ - ¾ c. of the dressing for several hours or overnight.
3. Cook the couscous according to the package directions, but use chicken broth as the cooking liquid rather than water (tastes MUCH better).
4. When the couscous has cooled completely, toss it with the tomatoes, cucumber, mint, and feta. Add about ½ - ¾ c. of the dressing (to taste) and toss gently.

5. Let the marinated steak sit out at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Then, take it out of the marinade and sprinkle it liberally with salt and pepper.
6. Grill the steak about 7 minutes on each side (depending on thickness) until medium-rare/medium. I used a grill pan, but I would definitely use an outdoor grill if I had one. As you can see, the indoor grill pan kind of smokes up my apartment...

7. Let the cooked steak rest for several minutes. Then, slice it thinly across the grain.
8. Serve the sliced steak over the couscous salad.


Happy Spring!