Brussels Sprouts, Oh How I Hate Thee!

Growing up, I was a typical child and I hated eating vegetables. It wasn't until I became a vegetarian that I slowly started incorporating more vegetables into my diet. And that was out of necessity because when at a restaurant, most vegetarian options were filled with a wide array of vegetables. Vegetarian options filled with vegetables? Shocking, right? So over the years I have grown to love and appreciate most vegetables. However there are still some vegetables that I just can't seem to enjoy. I am not a big fan of cucumbers, celery and brussels sprouts. I just think cucumbers and celery are sooooo boring. Brussels sprouts aren't quite as boring but for some reason I just haven't been able to find a way to prepare them that leaves me wanting more.

I have tried sauteing them, boiling them and baking/roasting them. But when I eat them, I just don't enjoy it and I don't want to eat them again. However when I eat other vegetables I actually enjoy the taste and think the addition of certain vegetables enhance the flavor of the dish. So in the pursuit to find a tasty brussels sprout recipe, I bought a frozen bag of them so I wouldn't feel the pressure of fast perishing produce. The first thing that I tried was mixing them into a salad. I also added vegan bacon bits, broccoli, carrots, broccoli slaw, onions, greek yogurt and honey mustard dressing. To my surprise, this was actually pretty tasty. Gave a weird after taste but that was probably from the vegan bacon bits, rather than the brussels sprouts.

Next I tried mixing them into a stir fry. I love making a stir fry for several reasons. 1) It's ridiculously easy. I just keep frozen bags of vegetable medleys in my freezer, toss them into a pan with tofu, onions, and any other fresh vegetables that I have on hand. 2) I am eating so many different types of vegetables in one sitting. And I am constantly trying to think of new vegetables that would taste great in a stir fry. 3) I usually top it with soy sauce or a low calorie stir fry sauce which offers a lot of flavor and variety but keeps the points plus value really low. 4) I can use the left over stir fry as a topping for my salad the next day at lunch.

So last night when I was preparing my dinner, I started off with a fifth of a block of tofu (the recommended serving size) in a large pan, with cooking spray. Then I threw in a frozen bag of vegetable medley, which includes broccoli, carrots, red pepper strips, onions, sugar snap peas, baby cut cob corn, and water chestnuts (it's called Harvest Hodgepodge vegetable blend from Trader Joe's). Then I chopped up some mushrooms and yellow onions to throw into the pan. While rummaging around my freezer looking for more vegetables, I noticed that I still had some frozen brussels sprouts and decided to throw some of those in too. Lastly I threw in a large handful of kale and topped it with soy sauce and a small splash of teriyaki sauce.

I loved the results! I thought the brussels sprouts were a great addition to the dish. And the soy sauce really complimented the flavor of the brussels sprouts. I also love putting kale into a stir fry because it bulks it up really nicely. This was also a great addition to my next day salad that I had for lunch.

I am still not a lover of brussels sprouts but I am trying to think of more and more ways to incorporate them into my everyday meals. Maybe I could try adding them to spaghetti or mash them up with a potato. Who knows, but I will keep trying, I am determined to like these unique little vegetables!