Sprouts and things

I'm afraid I've been suffering from a distinct lack of imagination with regards to my veggie cooking in recent days. I'm going to blame it on the superior quality of the veg we've been getting. 

Take the cauliflower. There are any number of ways to cook it, and any number of things to season it with, but all I wanted to do with it was make a lovely big puddle of cauliflower puree to dip a pan-fried duck breast into. Pureeing is a good way to use all of the stem as well as the florets, and if you simmer it in milk instead of water it makes a lusciously smooth puree with a fantastic cauliflower flavour. Salt and pepper are the only necessary additions.

Then there was the cavolo nero. Such an amazing vegetable. Open the bag, stick your nose in and smell the minerals! It's a little-known fact that Isambard Kingdon Brunel originally planned to construct the Clifton Suspension Bridge out of cavolo nero, and was only dissuaded when friends and well-wishers suggested it might be a bit floppy. Still, there must be so much iron in there, and it's so flavourful - I really don't feel the need to mess about with it much. It just gets roughly chopped and fried in butter with some finely sliced garlic. A delicious accompaniment to pretty much anything, I reckon. 

But what I really wanted to do with this was post to celebrate the unfairly-maligned Brussels sprout. 

I'll be honest: as a child I hated the things as much as the next fussy eater. I was glad I was only subjected to them on Christmas day. Oddly, the rest of my family seemed to dislike them too, including my grandma, though it was she that chose to put them on the menu. Perhaps it was designed to make us appreciate her lovingly constructed pigs in blankets even more. 

It wasn't until I was into my 20s that I discovered that sprouts needn't be a horribly bitter but otherwise flavourless ball of green mush. I'm now of the opinion that sprouts should never be served whole. They need to be finely sliced, and sautéed either on their own or with some bacon lardons. Or garlic. Or even sliced almonds. Just for a few minutes, until starting to brown in places. If you do that with them, they are absolutely delicious. 

If you really want to go for broke, you can bake your sliced sprouts under a little blanket of cream and cheese until the top is lightly golden and bubbling. Or, if you happened to have been within earshot of legendary food critic Jay Rayner today at the Redeem the Swede competition - as I was! (more of which later) - you might try mixing very finely sliced raw sprouts with anchovy mayonnaise. 

Unfortunately we seem to be at the end of the sprout season for this year. So hopefully you'll remember this photo when they come around again next winter, and remember to slice your sprouts!

Later this evening I will recount events at today's Redeem the Swede competition and publish my award-winning recipe for swede ice cream!