Roasted brussels sprouts with bacon and almonds

I've already proclaimed my love for cabbage, but I also enjoy its cousin, the brussels sprout. It has a stronger flavor than cabbage, but it's a nice way to mix things up if you're growing tired of cabbage (although I'm not sure that's possible). Of course these little guys are easily ruined if cooked too long (causing the release of sulfurous compounds), which is why they have such a

bad reputation. I've had great success blanching and sautéing these little gems, but wanted to try something a little different.

Roasted brussels sprouts with bacon and almonds

1 lb brussels sprouts (ideally small ones)

1 Tbsp olive oil

pinch of salt

freshly ground pepper

2 Tbsp sliced almonds

1 slice bacon, cut into small pieces

Trim stem end of sprouts, remove outer leaves, and cut each one in half. Toss sprouts with oil, salt, and pepper. Spread them out on a baking sheet and roast at 400, stirring occasionally, until browned (about 15 min). While they're cooking, toast almonds in a small skillet over medium heat until fragrant (about 5 min). Set almonds aside and add bacon to the skillet and cook until crisp. Remove bacon with slotted spoon, leaving grease behind. Sprinkle bacon and almonds on top of brussels sprouts. Serves 3.

This is another great (and extremely simple!) way to cook brussels sprouts. Instead of being tender and juicy, they have a crisp, almost crunchy, texture that I loved. Some of the leaves fell off while I was stirring and these got extremely brown. Eating these was like crunching on potato chips. The bacon and almonds were a nice addition, while stillallowing the brussels sprout taste to shine through. This was definitely a winner in my book, so I'm submitting it to this week's Weekend Herb Blogging. This food blogging event was originally started by Kalyn from Kalyn's Kitchen, and is now organized by Haalo at Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once. This week it's hosted by Ivy from Kopiaste, and I'm excited to have something to submit for the second week in a row!