Mustard - Roasted Brussels Sprouts

I don’t know what possessed me to buy a 2-lb. bag of Brussels sprouts when there are only two people in my household who actually like Brussels sprouts.  Fortunately, my Mom’s a trooper about eating my experiments (and at least pretending to like them).  Also fortunate is the fact that mustard makes Brussels sprouts delicious.

I first tried this combination in the form of Dijon-braised Brussels sprouts via smittenkitchen.com, but when I finally got around to using up the aging second pound of sprouts, it was a lazy afternoon when I didn’t feel like standing at the stove for any length of time.  So I decided to riff on the idea and oven roast the sprouts with a hefty dose of both Dijon and whole-grain mustard.  A couple garlic cloves and less than half an hour in the oven created a sweet, yet salty and pungent browned coating on the sprouts.  Roasting seemed to concentrate but mellow the flavors in delightful way, and I was surprised to find that I liked these sprouts even better than their braised cousins.

Mustard-Roasted Brussels Sprouts

1 pound Brussels sprouts, halved

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

2 small cloves garlic, minced fine (I used a garlic press)

scant ½ teaspoon Kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Place halved Brussels sprouts in bowl.  Mix remaining ingredients in separate bowl, then toss with the Brussels sprouts.  Spread the Brussels on a sheet pan and roast, tossing every 10 minutes or so for about 20-25 minutes, or until they are tender and golden brown.  (It’s good if the outer leaves of a few of the sprouts start to look almost too brown.)