Maple Dijon Brussel Sprouts with Cranberries, Walnuts, and Bacon

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!

My favorite Veteran, my dad!

We had a great kickoff to summer at our cottage.  Our weekend guests treated us to dinner one night, which was very much appreciated.

On Saturday night, we grilled up an awesome meal that seemed to get a lot of interest on my Facebook page – Darren marinated some pork tenderloins in his famous whiskey/soy sauce/brown sugar marinade and grilled them up.  I tried two new side dish recipes….chipotle lime grilled sweet potatoes and a cold brussel sprout salad.  They were both awesome!

The brussel sprouts were great because I made them up in the morning and then they just marinated in the refrigerator until dinner.  So easy!  We will definitely be making these a lot this summer!

Maple Dijon Brussel Sprouts with Cranberries, Walnuts, and Bacon

Ingredients

1 lb brussel sprouts, washed, bottoms trimmed and sliced in half lengthwise

3-4 slices organic, uncured, nitrate-free bacon (vegetarian option – see below*)

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 T. cider vinegar

1/2 T. real maple syrup

1/2 tsp. dijon mustard

1 small clove garlic, finely minced

1/8 – 1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/8 – 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

kosher or sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Directions

Cook bacon in a medium-sized frying pan until brown and crispy.  Remove to a plate covered with paper towel.  When cooled, crumble into bite-size pieces.

Drain most of the grease out of the pan, reserving just enough to lightly coat the bottom of the pan (I used a paper towel, but be careful!).   Add brussel sprouts to pan, cut-side down.  Saute for about 4-5 minutes until cut side is nicely browned.  Flip and add a little water to the pan to help steam them.  Cook an additional 5 minutes, tossing them around if necessary so that they don’t burn.

Mix together olive oil, cider vinegar, maple syrup, dijon, minced garlic, and season with kosher or sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.

Toss brussel sprouts with dressing and refrigerate for a few hours for flavors to mix.

When ready to serve, mix chopped bacon, dried cranberries, and chopped walnuts in with the marinated brussel sprouts and serve.  I left the dish out while we were making dinner so that it was room temperature instead of being cold.

*Vegetarian option – saute brussel sprouts in olive oil or butter instead of bacon grease and omit bacon crumbles from topping.