Happy Boxing Day!

I was hoping to upload a blog post last week, but it’s all about the charity Bladder Health UK and I’m waiting for them to approve it before I publish. In the meantime, as it is Boxing Day, I thought I’d do something a little different and share a couple of festive recipes with you.

I used to think I didn’t like sprouts, but a few years ago I realised I’d been cooking them all wrong, the way pretty much everyone in the UK does. When our Polish neighbour gave me a recipe for garlic sprouts, I suddenly discovered what I’d been missing out on. I’ve modified the recipe as my dietary requirements have changed and I now present for you two versions: a healthy one, and an indulgent one. I make no claims that they are IC-friendly, but they are very delicious! In the summer months, you can substitute the sprouts for cabbage. The healthy version is one of my all-time favourite meals and I’m so grateful that I have grown to love this nutritious and under-loved vegetable.

Garlic Sprouts (Healthy Version)

For each person you will need:

• Two handfuls of frozen, diced butternut squash. You can use fresh if you prefer, but frozen is much easier and there is less wastage.
• Two large banana shallots or equivalent. You can also use a whole onion or a leek if you prefer.
• Fresh sprouts. I use about six if they’re really large, about ten for medium, and about 20 if they’re the tiny ones.
• About 25g of butter and a dash of olive oil to cook in. You can use just oil if you like, but it will affect the taste – they’re much nicer with butter.
• Three crushed garlic cloves or a third of a tube of garlic puree.
• Sea salt and black pepper.

What to do:

• Melt the butter and oil in a frying pan or, even better, a lidded wok. I use an electric cooker and I start things off on hob setting 4 (out of 5).
• Put in the diced butternut squash.
• While the squash is getting a head start, peel and dice the shallots.
• Add the shallots to the pan. Stir frequently to ensure no burning or sticking.
• Peel and finely slice the sprouts. Add to the pan. After a minute or two, turn the heat down to number 2 out of 5, or equivalent. Stir occasionally.
• Once the veg has gone nice and soft, add the crushed garlic or garlic puree, the sea salt, and plenty of black pepper. Keep cooking until everything is at the consistency you like. I like to carry on until everything is really soft and mushy, but you can stop whenever you like.

Garlic Sprouts (Indulgent Version)

I no longer have this, because it’s full of dairy, but it was very tasty when I did eat it!

For each person you will need:

• Three or four slices of bacon, preferably organic.
• Two large banana shallots or equivalent. You can also use a whole onion or a leek if you prefer.
• Fresh sprouts. I use about six if they’re really large, about ten for medium, and about 20 if they’re the tiny ones.
• About 25g of butter and a dash of olive oil to cook in. You can use just oil if you like, but it will affect the taste – they’re much nicer with butter.
• Three crushed garlic cloves or a third of a tube of garlic puree.
• Sea salt and black pepper.
• Single cream – probably about 80ml
• A hard cheese, such as Lancashire or cheddar. Probably about 30g.

What to do:

• Melt the butter and oil in a frying pan or, even better, a lidded wok. I use an electric cooker and I start things off on hob setting 4 (out of 5).
• Peel and dice the shallots.
• Chop the bacon and add it and the shallots to the pan.
• Peel and finely slice the sprouts.
• Once the bacon has changed colour and the shallots are starting to soften, add the sprouts to the pan. After a minute or two, turn the heat down to number 2 out of 5, or equivalent. Stir occasionally.
• Once the veg has gone nice and soft, add the crushed garlic or garlic puree, the sea salt, and plenty of black pepper.
• Just before you’re ready to serve, add the cream and some grated or chopped cheese. Continue to heat and stir until the cheese has melted and you’ve got a lovely gooey meal.

If I had a really Instagrammable kitchen and life, I’d cook it, take pictures and show you. If I loved cooking, I’d even show you pictures of each stage. But I do enough cooking as it is, I don’t have an Insta-kitchen, and I can’t be bothered. So you’ll just have to use your imagination to visualise it and your common sense if you try to cook it! Feel free to send in your own pictures if you like and I’ll add them in later! Also feel free to share the recipes on your social media using the ‘share’ buttons at the bottom of the post.

Both recipes are truly delicious and are an excellent way to use up your leftover sprouts this festive season. And as I said, they work with cabbage too, so if you do enjoy the meals you can still eat them over the summer! I love to eat the top one with tuna mayonnaise and Tesco’s sweet fired baby beetroot. If that’s not sophisticated, I don’t know what is!!

I hope you had a lovely Christmas.

Tiny

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