Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts & Pomegranate

So in my family there is somewhat of a divide when it comes to a love of sulphurous vegetables.

In one corner you’ve got me & my Mum, we are the cabbage champions, broccoli buds, you name it, if its related to a green leafy we are there. (My aunt probably falls into this category too but if we start going into the extended family we’ll be here all day!).

So sticking to the immediate kitchen table crew we then segue over to my Dad & younger sister. They don’t like these guys so much, it’s more of a tolerated situation because they know they should eat them (my Dad more than my sister who will just skirt around them even at the ripe old age of 24.)

This to me is obviously not good enough, I am pleased that some go down but at the same time I get annoyed when I think people aren’t enjoying food to it’s maximum (despite whether they’re getting the nutritional benefits or not – see part Nutritional Therapist, part die hard foodie always 😀 ) so obviously I needed to rise to the challenge so that come Christmas Day (or whenever they’re served) there ends up being a serving spoon sword fight for the last few sprouts.

By roasting the sprouts you get a lovely caramelised edge to them, similar to roasted cauliflower. They also don’t become water logged as they would with boiling and their beautiful nutty taste becomes delightfully intensified but not overwhelming. By adorning the finished bowl with roasted hazelnuts & the ruby jewels of a pomegranate you add more wonderful texture & bursts of freshness, whilst also creating an absolute stunner of a table centrepiece. (They aren’t necessary however, I regularly just roast sprouts to have by themselves but that would make for a slightly boring recipe to share with you ;p)

But anyway the moral of that long winded tale – everybody loves them, and actually last Christmas Day I didn’t do enough! Now that’s something I never dreamt I’d say 🙂