I Made Them Eat Brussel Sprouts

I made my New Years dinner guests eat brussel sprouts, and they liked them! Three of them had never had them before (I'm guess thier parents hated them) and one didn't like them from before. but all seven guests enjoyed them, as did I. How did I do it? Here is my basic guide:

- buy fresh brussel sprouts
- braise them, don't boil them
- don't over cook them
- coat them in cheese and butter (but not too much)... yum

Brussel Sprouts with Parmesan Cheese

~ 2lbs fresh brussel sprouts
- 6 tbls grated (or shredded) parmesan cheese, the good stuff!!
- 2 tbls butter
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt

Wash and trim the sprouts. To trim brussel sprouts, use a small knife. Be careful not to cut yourself while trimming just the very tips of the stem end of the sprout (the dried out bit). Remove any brown/yellow, spotted, or loose leaves. If the sprouts are large or not uniform in size, cut the large ones in half. They should form tight heads.

Add water and salt to a wide skillet or sauce pan, hopefully big enough for most sprouts to be in a single layer. Bring water to a boil and add sprouts. Reduce to low eat and cover for ~ 8-10 minutes until the sprouts are bright green and tender. After 8 minutes remove one and try to insert a knife into the base, it should go in a small amount with little resistance. Remove and drain the sprouts. (btw.. this is call braising)

This can be done up to an hour before your meal is to be ready. Right before serving, melt the butter in a large skillet/sauce pan. Let it get foamy and slighty browned. Add the sprouts and toss them in the butter until heated and some start to brown slightly. Remove and immeadiately toss in the parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!