Brussels sprout and potato gratin

Potato gratin is a great winter dish. This recipe adds our Veggie of the Month to this already awesome, creamy version. The slightly bitter Brussels sprouts go perfectly with the sweet taste of potatoes and cream.

 

Brussels sprout and potato gratin

 

Brussels sprout and potato gratin 3

 

Brussels sprout and potato gratin 2

 

Brussels sprouts and potato gratin

What you need:
1,5kg potatoes
500g Brussels sprouts
225g bacon bits
2 shallots, chopped
125ml white wine
250ml cream
125ml vegetable broth
100g Emmentaler (or Gruyère) cheese
salt
pepper
nutmeg

What you do:
Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F. Butter a casserole dish.

Peel the potatoes and cut them into very thin slices. Rinse the Brussels sprouts, remove the outer leaves and cut them in half.

In a small saucepan, sauté the bacon over medium-high heat. After 2-3 minutes, add the shallots. When the shallots turn soft brown, deglaze with the white wine. Stir to dissolve what has caramelized on the bottom of the pot. Then add the cream and broth, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add a lot of salt – the potatoes soak it all up. It is just right when you can taste the salt and would usually think it was too much. Stir well while bringing it to a boil, then remove the saucepan from the heat.

Arrange the potato slices in overlapping layers in the prepared dish. Evenly spread the Brussels sprouts in a top layer. Pour the cream over potatoes and Brussels sprouts, then sprinkle with cheese.

Bake for 40 minutes. Bon appetit!


Almond and cream sheet cake

Simple things can be the best things – like this simple sheet cake recipe that I love. It is so easy, you just need a few things that you might have at home anyway. And just in case: It’s a perfect emergency cake if you totally spaced you’re having people over for coffee in an hour or when just don’t feel like spending hours in the kitchen for a cake.
 

Almond_cream_sheet_cake
 

almond cream sheet cake 2

 
almond cream sheet cake 3
 

Almond and cream sheet cake

What you need:
200g cream
200g sugar
1 tbsb vanilla sugar
3 eggs
salt
210g flour
1 tsp baking powder

For the almond topping:
100g sugar
125g butter
6 tbsp milk
200g sliced almonds

 
What you do:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F.
In a large bowl, whip the cream and sugar, vanilla sugar and a pinch of salt together until whipped to soft peaks. Whisk in the eggs, flower and baking powder.
Spread the dough on the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
In the meantime, melt the butter. Stir in sugar and milk. Add the almonds, mix well.
Spread the almond mix on the cake and bake for another 15 minutes or until the almonds are golden brown.


Roasted Brussels sprouts

This recipe is a completely foolproof way to make Brussels sprouts taste awesome!

 

Roasted Brussels sprouts

 

Roasted Brussels sprouts

 
 

Roasted Brussels sprouts

What you need:

700g Brussels sprouts
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsb grated Parmesan
Salt
Pepper

 

What you do:

Preheat the oven to 230°C/450°F.

Remove the outer leaves from the brussels sprouts and cut the stems if they are dry or too long after you took away some leaves, then cut in quarters.

In a bowl, toss the Brussels sprouts with oil and vinegar. Spread them on a baking pan lined with parchment and put them in the oven.

Let them roast for about 25 minutes, stir every once on a while (watch out when you open the oven because when the balsamic vinegar evaporates, you seriously don’t want to inhale that).

When the Brussels sprouts are ready, take them out of the oven, put them in bowl and toss with the Parmesan. Serve immediately.


Veggie of the Month: Brussels sprouts

While eating vegetables is always a good idea, it is best to buy and eat them in season. The taste is better and especially when the produce is grown locally, you’re doing the environement a favor as well. You could either go to a farmer’s market and just buy what’s there, or check a seasonal calendar like this one to find out what’s in season right now.

On the Gourmet Elephant, I will post a new “Veggie of the Month” recipe on Wednesdays. The VotM in January is…

Brussels Sprouts!

Ok, I guess some of you just thought “d’oh”. Promise me you give them one more chance! They can be really good and you are definitely missing out on something if you won’t try baking them like I do in this Wednesday’s recipe.

Brussels sprouts Veggie of the Month