Jen's Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Image via DiscoverHealthyFood.com

Tell her or don't tell her. Maybe I will. But my mommy was right:

Vegetables are good for you.
Why do people hate vegetables or maybe eat them only because they have to? Because you're cooking them wrong.

People either overcook them until they're colorless and mushy or they murder them with butter and cheese, which pretty much kills the healthy aspects anyway.

No veggie has been boiled until brown and mangled more than the world's cutest cabbage: the Brussels Sprout.

Image via Flickr by Nick Saltmarsh

My friend Jen from CareerCoachJen.com and DiscoverHealthyFood.com has the right idea. Keep it simple and roast them.

(She also had the spelling right and I had to edit myself. It's "Brussels sprout" like the city and not "brussel sprout.")


Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients:
2 cups Brussels sprouts per person
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, which is about 180 degrees celsius (had to figure out conversion between Fahrenheit and Celsius while cooking in Spain!).

Line baking sheet with parchment paper. If you don’t have, bake directly on the baking sheet.

Cut off ends of washed Brussels sprouts, then cut in half. Place into a large bowl. Toss with 1/4 cup olive oil. Add more OO if serving more than 4 people.

Sprouts shouldn’t be super wet, just a little drizzle. Spread sprouts evenly on baking sheet. Sprinkle salt and black pepper over Brussels sprouts.

I use very little salt, or use non-salt instead. (One of my favorites is Costco’s Organic No-salt Seasoning).

Bake for 20 minutes or until edges are brown and some sprout leaves are crispy.

Serve immediately with meal. Great with couscous and green salad, as shown, for full dinner. Extra sprouts make great leftovers, but these taste so good it’s rare to have any left over!

Is it a complicated recipe? No but the good ones rarely are.

Take away a few things:

• Roasting brings out flavor in everything. When you boil vegetables, flavor and vitamins end up in the water. Roast them and everything stays inside.
• Simple seasonings let the flavor shine through. Pepper and a little salt may be all you need. I'd add a little spice, but I do that to everything.
• Mix it up. You can roast squash, carrots, onions, garlic and nearly anything with this. Make sure the other ingredients are cut in the right size so they cook at about the same speed as the sprouts.

Helping people both young and old enjoy healthy vegetables is perhaps the toughest of cooking challenges. Making chocolate delicious is easy.

What's your secret for getting your friends and family to love vitamins and nutrition?

GearWeAre.com Knows How to Make Fire

Yeah, you know where to find the best Heat-Resistant Gloves around, but what good are they if you have no heat?

We pampered 21st Century kids certainly take fire for granted. Push the striker on the grill. Turn the knob on the stove. With the right app, I'm sure you can get flames to shoot from a smart phone.

But out in the woods, especially if the weather is non-Bahamas, staying warm and cooking food is no longer automatic.

It takes the right gear.

That's what the people at Gear We Are specialize in: helping you buy the right stuff for all your outdoor adventures.

From tents to kayaks to dog toys, they have you covered.

But the categories that put the twinkle in my eye all relate to fire.

No, nothing is wrong with me.

Image via Gear We Are

I have a couple of camp stoves but none are as cool as what they've reviewed. I'm personally charmed by the simplicity of the portable Grilliput. Up in the woods and cooking over gas? No thanks. We're grilling over coals.

No spark, no dice however. I used to hike in fear my matches would get wet and it would be game over. Fear no more if you have the Polystriker XL by Exotac. Then you can harness the inferno-causing power of 5500Fº molten globulars.

Image via Gear We Are

I'm not sure what molten globulars are exactly, but I'm sure I don't have enough of them.

The Gear We Are people are dedicated outdoors-folk serious about separating the good stuff from the junk.

You can learn it from them or you can learn it ten miles up a trail.

The choice is yours.

Jen's Biscuits and Gravy Breakfast Casserole

I've known Jen since college. She was always the most outgoing and fearlessly social member of our gang.

We joked she should have "HI I'M JEN" as her license plate.

She's still getting to know people, understanding them and helping them be successful together. Now she's a career coach.

Since 2009 she's been building better careers and stronger teams through her own consultancy Career Coach Jen.

She started as a recruiter in 1998. Then she realized most businesses didn't really have to hire new people, they just had to do more with the talent they had.

I appreciate this, but she really had my attention when she told me about her food blog: DiscoverHealthyFood.com.

She features many great recipes, but her Biscuits and Gravy Breakfast Casserole is one of my favorites.

I'll let her tell you the story:

Image via DiscoverHealthyFood.com by Jen Anderson

At the young age of 41, I became a mom and step mom for the first time. Every other weekend I find myself in a position to entertain and feed kids and I want to build special and unique memories with them too. I'm not their mom, but as their "bonus mom" I want to positively impact their time with us. So, cook for them, I do!

This Biscuits and Gravy Breakfast Casserole is a HUGE hit around here. The kids love it and hover around the kitchen as the smells permeate every taste bud in the house!

It means the world to me to have time with these great people, and it is an honor to cook and help their growing bodies develop. I hope your family enjoys this recipe as much as our crazy bunch does!

Ingredients:

1 12-oz tube refrigerated biscuits

4 Tbsp. butter

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1 lb cooked sausage – I used maple and the touch of sweetness was really yummy

1 cup shredded cheese

For the gravy:

4 Tbsp. flour

salt & pepper to taste

2 cups milk

Directions:

• Cook sausage in pan. Instead of links, I use a tube of Jimmy Dean which is crumbly and easy to spread in a dish.

• Cut each biscuit into 8 pieces. Set aside.

• In a bowl, mix the eggs, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Set aside.

• In a saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper, and slowly add the 2 cups of milk. Simmer, stirring, until it’s thickened. This can burn easily so keep stirring. Should only take 2-3 minutes.

• In a greased (I sprayed a light layer of Pam) 9×13 glass baking dish, layer the biscuits, sausage, cheese, egg mixture, and gravy.

• Bake at 350°F/180°C for 35-45 min, until the eggs on the bottom are cooked.

• Allow to cool 5 minutes, if you can wait that long!
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Serve with Frank’s Red Hot sauce for an awesome vinegar-y kick. Enjoy!

I’ll see you at the table!

Next time I'm in Utah, hook this up, Jen. I love a big hearty weekend breakfast. And a nap.

Just don't burn your hands taking it out of the oven.