Brussels Sprouts with Pecans & Cranberries
Sautéed Pan Fried Brussels Sprouts with glazed pecans and dried cranberries, is an incredible Brussels Sprouts side dish that is perfect for both regular dinner sides and for special holidays like Thanksgiving Dinner, Christmas Dinner and even Easter! Tastes fancy, looks fancy but is simple to prepare- all the best combinations of a delicious and easy Brussels Sprouts side dish!
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 135kcal
Ingredients
Cranberry Pecan Brussels Sprouts Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels Sprouts raw whole
- 5 oz. glazed pecans bag
- EVOO
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Boil whole raw Brussels Sprouts in a saucepan. Put all Brussels Sprouts into pan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Continue on rolling boil for 3 additional minutes.
- Remove saucepan from heat and drain water in a colander. Let Brussels Sprouts cool down to the touch.
- Once Brussels Sprouts are cooled, halve each one and set aside. (they should cut fairly easily)
- Using a skillet, drizzle a bit of Olive Oil (about a tablespoon) into a skillet and bring pan to medium/medium-high heat.
- Once oil is heated, dump 16 oz. bag of Glazed Pecans into skillet and let warm.
- Sauté the glazed pecans for 2-3 minutes. Let them warm up and stir often enough that they do not stick to the pan but also allowing them to heat.
- Add halved Brussels Sprouts back to pan and continue to sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. At this level, it is fine to add another tablespoon or drizzle of oil as needed to get a bit of crisp or brown edges onto the sprouts. Tongs can be helpful with individually placing sprouts down on pan.
- Generously season entire pan with salt and pepper.
- Brussels Sprouts should begin to brown up a slight bit and its fine to decide what level of "golden" you want.
- Remove from heat and add 1/2 cup of dried cranberries.
- Combine and stir all ingredients together.
- Serve as is or add a bit of Balsamic Glaze on top (OPTIONAL).
Notes
- Toppings – Easily change out glazed pecans for glazed walnuts. Additionally, any bagged nuts work fine in this recipe (although the sweet glaze with the salty Brussels Sprout is a great addition and brings something special to the recipe). Another recommendation is to look at the bags of salad toppers that come with nuts and dried fruits to add. There are often mixtures of nuts with dried strawberries, cranberries, raisins or blueberries that would also work fine with this method of cooking Brussels Sprouts.
- Dressings – Dressings typically go great with these vegetables ( for example the homemade Caesar dressing on Caesar Brussels Sprouts) and sticking to this recipe, a drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar Glaze or a Balsamic Vinaigrette would complement it well.
- Crumbled Soft Cheeses – Gourmet cheeses often make their way into many Brussels Sprouts side dishes like this, so feel free to add a bit of crumbled Gorgonzola, Goat Cheese, or Blue Cheese to this dish (based on your own tastes).
- Cooked, Crumbled, and Crispy Bacon Pieces – Need I say more?
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 135kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 99mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 16g