Tag Archives: Brussels sprouts

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Tastes of the Season: Crustless Brussels Sprouts Pie

Depending on how you feel about baby cabbages, as we tend to call Brussels sprouts around our house, this could be a great recipe or one to avoid. I will mention here that you can substitute other vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, and kohlrabi, for the sprouts and it will make a very taste quiche.

I served this with prime rib for Christmas dinner and it was a hit with even someone who wasn’t that crazy about Brussels sprouts. So, for the adventurous, here’s a different side dish for the holidays or any time. This is based mostly on a recipe I got from 12Tomatoes.com and adapted a little bit. I eliminated the crust since most of the carbs are in it, which leaves a much lower carb’d dish. I also added a little ricotta to tone down the eggs and add more texture.

My Christmas dunner with prime rib, cranberry sauce, Brussels sprout pie, creamed cauliflower, and Harvard beets; all low-carb.

Crustless Brussels Sprouts Quiche

2 cups of Brussels Sprouts, trimmed and outer leaves removed
1 cups Heavy Cream or half-and-half
1 cup Gruyere or Swiss cheese, grated
2 Eggs
2 tablespoons Ricotta Cheese
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground Pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F.) Coat a pie plate with butter or cooking spray.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook Brussels sprouts for about five minutes until fork tender.

Arrange the sprouts in the bottom of the pie plate, standing them on end if possible. I used frozen sprouts and they refused to stand up. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the top.

In a medium bowl, add eggs, cream, ricotta cheese, and seasonings. Whisk together until blended, then pour carefully over the sprouts.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool a few minutes before servings. It will deflate some.

Makes 6 to 8 servings depending on appetite.

Nutrition Information per serving (6 per pie):
Calories: 263 Fat: 23 Net Carbs: 3.8 g Protein: 10.2 g

Nutrition Information per serving (8 per pie):
Calories: 197.3 Fat: 17.3 g Net Carbs: 2.9 g Protein: 7.6 g

Have you tried this recipe? Let me know how you like it.

Main Dish, Pork, Recipes, Soups and Stews

Savory Pork Stew for St. Patrick’s Day

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Hard to believe that we’re almost to the end of February with only a week left in the month. I’m already thinking ahead to spring, St. Patrick’s Day, and Easter. We’ve had enough rain and snow in northern Nevada this winter that I think the spring should be spectacular this year. I’ve started to get a jump on recipes for the season and one I tried this past weekend is a variation of an Irish Stew.

Mostly a true Irish Stew, if there is one, would use lamb in it. While lamb is okay. it’s not my first choice for meat. To be honest, I prefer pork over lamb or beef, so I was happy to find this recipe from one of my favorite online people, Chef John, that uses pork and Brussels sprouts, which he calls baby cabbages. I don’t think that’s exactly accurate, but I do like sprouts so it’s fine with me. I expect, you could cut cabbage into quarters, cook them in water for a few minutes, then pop them into the stew for the last five minutes and they would work quite well. I only made a couple of minor changes to Chef John’s stew. Check out his recipe and video here.

This stew is delicious, very savory, easy to make, and best of all, low in carbs. I find the pork is more tender than beef and is, I’m sorry little piggies, a favorite taste of mine. You could still make the stew with beef or chicken, if you prefer.

I cheated a little and bought my fresh carrots already cut into slices. It worked well.

Savory Pork Irish Stew

3 pounds boneless Pork Shoulder, cut into 2-inch cubes
Salt and ground Black Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 tablespoon Butter
1 cup Onions, chopped
2 teaspoons Garlic, minced
1 tablespoon all purpose Flour*
1 Bay Leaf
8 ounces Dark Beer, like Guinness
2 cups Chicken Broth
3 Carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 stalks Celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup chopped fresh Parsley
3 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
12 Brussels Sprouts, halved

*low carb flours don’t work well as a thickener

Season the pork with salt and pepper. In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil. Add pork cubes in batches, cooking and stirring until they are lightly browned on all sides. Remove to a bowl and do the next batch until they are all done. Set aside.

To the pan, add butter, then add the onions and cook the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for about thirty seconds. Add flour; cook and stir until it is mixed in completely. Add beer to the pot, then add the cornstarch mixture and a bay leaf. Cook and stir until the mixture thickens.

Add pork, carrots, celery, and chicken broth to the pan and bring to a simmer. Stir in parsley and balsamic vinegar. Lower the heat to medium low and continue to simmer until the pork is tender, about two hours.

Heat a pot of water to a boil, then add the halved Brussels sprouts and cook for 5 minutes. Drain the sprouts, then add to the stew and cook until the sprouts are fork-tender, around 5 more minutes.
Serve with Irish Soda Bread or a cauliflower/turnip mash to complete the meal.

Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories 623 Fat: 44.3 g Net Carbs: 8 g Protein: 42.1 g

Breads, Breakfast & Brunch, Italian Inspired Recipes, Pork, Poultry, Recipes

White Pizza for a change of pace

Every once in a while, a body wants a packed-with-goodness pizza. That’s not always easy to do when you’re watching your carbohydrates. But it’s not impossible. You can use a couple of substitutes for the pizza crust that are pretty good, like chicken, portobello mushrooms, sliced eggplant, low carb tortillas, and this one I used for this recipe, a cauliflower pizza. Now, if you don’t like cauliflower, then choose one of the other options and just follow the toppings part of the recipe.

I made a vegetable-packed white sauce pizza. In this case the white sauce is simply an Alfredo pasta sauce. I used Classico because it is pretty low in carbs, but there are others that are also good for it. Check the jar and if it is around 3 net carbs per 1/4 cup, you’re in the ballpark. The taste of this is really great and the vegetables can be pretty flexible to what you like on it. Want it completely vegetarian, leave off the chicken and bacon, but it will have cheese. I’ve listed the carb counts for the crust separate from the toppings and the total combined as well. The crust is good for any pizza you’d like to make.

White Sauce Vegetable and Chicken Pizza

For the Pizza Cauliflower Crust
2 1/2 cups Cauliflower, grated
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
1 Egg, slightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon Ground Oregano
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Dried Basil

For the Toppings:
1/2 cup Brussels sprouts, sliced or shredded
1/2 cup Mushrooms, pieces or slices
1/2 cup Kale, chopped or torn
1/2 cup Spinach, chopped or torn
3 tablespoons Bell Peppers, chopped
1/4 cup Onions, chopped
1 1/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese, shredded
1 cup Alfredo sauce (Classico)
1 cup Chicken Breast, cooked and sliced or shredded
2 slices Thick Bacon, cooked and crumbled

Preheat oven to 425 degrees (F.)

Crust:

Put your raw cauliflower in the food processor and pulse until it resembles rice or couscous. Or you can grate it by hand with a food grater. Put the grated cauliflower on a clean towel (flour sack towers are great for this), fold the towel over the cauliflower and squeeze to get as much water as possible out of the vegetable.

Put the dried cauliflower in a bowl and add the parmesan cheese, oregano, garlic powder, and dried basil. Mix in the egg, a dash of salt, and stir until completely blended. You can form it into ball at this point.

Put a sheet of parchment paper over a round stone or on a baking sheet. I used a baking pan lined with foil and it also works. Spray the foil with baking spray before you put the cauliflower in it. Shape the cauliflower dough into round pizza or a rectangle. Press it firmly together.

Bake for about 20 minutes until the crust is a golden brown. Pull it out and let it rest about five minutes, then add your toppings.

Vegetable Pizza

Prepare all the vegetables while the crust is cooking. Only the chicken and bacon are pre-cooked, although you can parboil the Brussels sprouts if you cut them in slices so that they aren’t too crunchy. Put them in a pan of boiling water for three minutes, then rinse in cold water and drain. OR put them in a bowl in the microwave for three minutes then drain.

Before the final cheese is spread and the pizza cooked.
Before the final cheese is spread and the pizza cooked.

Spread half of the Mozzarella cheese over the crust, then spread the Alfredo sauce over the top of that. Distribute the chicken and vegetables evenly over the crust and top with the bacon pieces. Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella over the top and bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Cut and serve. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Information per serving (crust and toppings):
Calories: 418 Fat: 26.2 g Net Carbs: 9.7 g Protein: 36.4 g

Nutrition Information per serving (crust only):
Calories: 92.5 Fat: 5.1 g Net Carbs: 2.5 g Protein: 8.1 g

Nutrition Information per serving (toppings only):
Calories: 325.8 Fat: 21.1 g Net Carbs: 7.2 g Protein: 28.3 g

Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Chicken Leek Pot Pie Comfort

Last week, a storm system rolled into the Northern Sierra  Mountains and brought downright chilly weather to Reno along with some heavy rains at times.  It was lovely to go from over 100-degree temperatures one day to down in the low 70’s for several days.  But it also called out for a casserole dish or some other kind of comfort food.  So I made this wonderfully delicious chicken with leeks and other vegetables pot pie.   It has a rich creamy sauce with light seasoning that is just great.   I used kohlrabi and Brussels sprouts in the dish, but the vegetables can vary.  Add turnips and green beans or cauliflower and broccoli.  The recipe is versatile.

Chicken Leek Pot Pie

Chicken and leek are just two of the wonderful ingredients in this delicious pot pie.

3/4 lb Chicken Breast
1/2 cup Leek, sliced (white and greens)
1/2 cup Mushrooms, sliced
3/4 cup Kohlrabi, diced and parboiled
1 cup Brussels sprouts, cut into quarters and parboiled
1/2 cup Onions, chopped
1 teaspoon Better than Bullion Chicken
1/2 cup Heavy Whipping Cream or Half and Half
1 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoon ground Thyme
1 teaspoon ground Sage,
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
2 tablespoons Butter
1 tablespoon Low Carb Flour

Topping
1 cup Low Carb Flour
1/4 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/3 cup Water
1 large Egg,
1 teaspoon Garlic powder
1/3 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded & divided

Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F.) Prepare a 2 to 3-quart baking dish by spraying lightly with cooking spray.

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Cover and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat, then add leeks and onions. Cook until they are just tender. Add chicken and cook until the meat turns white. Push the meat and vegetables to the side, add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon low carb flour and stir together to make a paste in the middle. Add the cream, bullion and seasonings. Stir until mixed together, then pull the meat and vegetables back into the sauce. Add the mushrooms, kohlrabi and Brussels sprouts. Turn burner to simmer and cook while you prepare the topping.

In a medium bowl, add the topping ingredients, except 1/2 of the cheese, and mix together. If it is too thick, add a little water. This is like a moist drop biscuit dough so don’t over-mix or add too much liquid.

Pour the chicken filling mix into the prepared baking dish. Use a spoon to drop six large biscuits over the top and use the back of the spoon to spread them to make an almost solid crust over the top.

Bake for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top and bake another 5 minutes to melt the cheese.

Makes 6 servings

Nutrition Info per serving:
     Calories:318.6 Fat: 22.7 g Net Carbs: 6.2 g Protein: 20.7 g

Give this recipe a try and add your own favorites to it.  Let me know how you like this.  By the way, what is your favorite comfort food for a chilly day?