Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts

My affection for this little green vegetable has grown tremendously over the past years.  I don't think I'd ever tasted a brussels sprout until about five years ago.  My mom must not have liked them, because we never had them growing up.   I'm not sure what took me so long to give them a try, but now I know I've been missing out. These baby cabbages are delicious, especially when covered with a balsamic glaze and little pieces of pancetta.   Rumor has it that sometimes they can be bitter, but I haven't had that problem in the recipes I've used.  This is my favorite way to cook these little guys up, but I've found them to also be tasty when oven roasted with a  blend of other  vegetables, like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and onions.

I begin this recipe by slowly browning a couple of slices of diced pancetta in a skillet.  Pancetta is an Italian bacon that is, oh so good.  I keep some in my freezer for this recipe and my butternut squash soup.  If you don't have it, you can use a nice thick cut bacon.  Don't be tempted to rush this step, because you don't want the bacon to burn.  What a waste that would be and these little cubes cook faster than you would imagine.  Once they are browned, remove to a paper towel lined bowl and set aside. Go ahead and cook more than you think you'll need, because it's near impossible not to nibble on this while the rest of the dish comes together.  This is especially true if you have family members who will be walking through the kitchen while you work!

Don't pour any of that rendered fat out of the pan.  Trust me, you want all of it.  Place the brussels sprouts cut side down in the hot pan with the bacon fat.  Cook them, undisturbed, until they are nicely browned. It's tempting to mess with them, but you really need to leave them alone or they won't brown.

This is what you're going for.  

Once the sprouts have browned, add 1 cup of water to the pan and cover. 

Simmer until sprouts are fork tender.  I usually end up adding more water, about half way through the cooking time.  Keep an eye on them so they don't get too dry.   Then remove them to a bowl and cook off any additional water that might be in the pan.

To the dry pan, I add 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar.  Then I cook for a few minutes until the vinegar begins to thicken.

Add a couple of tablespoons of butter to the syrupy balsamic glaze and swirl it in the pan to melt.  Then add the sprouts and pancetta back to the pan and stir to coat.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

I could eat a entire bowl of these by myself, they're soooo good. 

They were also pretty tasty with oven roasted sweet potatoes and chicken piccata. I'm so proud of the fact that we are still enjoying the sweet potatoes that I grew last year in my garden.   

So, how do you feel about brussels sprouts?