Honey Caramelized Brussels Sprouts

One of the great things about this blog being for fun and not for my job is that no one is judging me for missing my own personal deadlines. If I have a bad week and I miss it, we'll all live. The current farmers market challenge on the table is brussels sprouts. The good news is, they lasted and didn't go bad. I even picked up some more at this week's Dupont Circle Farmers Market.

I begged BLT Steak for their recipe and to my delight they complied!  I made a few tweaks, but in general, they are the first restaurant that made me love brussels sprouts, so it's gonna be pretty close. I followed the recipe, but omitted the chestnuts & parsley and used pancetta* instead of prosciutto.

BLT Steak's Honey Caramelized Brussels Sprouts

(Serves 6)

12 ounces chestnuts, roasted and peeled
2 pounds Brussels sprouts, stems trimmed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1 cup honey
1 tablespoon sugar
1 -10 ounce slice prosciutto*, cut into 1/2-inch strips
1 cup parsley leaves, chopped

Full recipe after the jump...

Prepare the Chestnuts: Cut the peeled chestnuts into thin slices.

Blanch the Brussels Sprouts: Bring a large pot of salted water to boiling. Add the Brussels sprouts and cook 5 minutes. 

Drain and transfer the sprouts to a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain well.

Sauté the Brussels Sprouts: In a large sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter until it begins to foam. Add the garlic and shallots and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until the shallots are tender. Add the Brussels sprouts and chestnuts. Stir until well-combined. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the honey, sugar and prosciutto. Turn up the flame to medium-high. Cook, not moving the pan, for about 2 minutes (mine took more like 4 minutes on high, but ovens are different) to allow the Brussels sprouts to caramelize and the prosciutto to crisp.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley.

Serve immediately.

To make a reservation at BLT Steak in DC and experience them first hand, click here.  For Chef Laurent Tourondel's cookbooks, this link will take you to Amazon to purchase his "Fresh from the Market".

*VEGETARIAN NOTE: It would be totally fine to leave out the meat and make this.