Thanksgiving Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon and Tomatos

When I think of traditional Thanksgiving fare, brussel sprouts are a definite must have. They’re perfectly in season during this time, and if you’re lucky, your local market will have them fresh and still on their thick stalk.

Brussel Sprouts are mini-cabbages and are delicious cooked, or shredded raw in a salad. My go-to way of cooking them are roasting in a high oven with olive oil or bacon. For today’s recipe, I added mini grape tomatoes for some sweetness and burst of color.

I prepped the brussel sprouts by snapping them off the stalk, cutting off the ends and sliced them into halves or quarters depending on how big they were. I wanted them to be about the same size as the grape tomatoes so they would cook in about the same time.

I started off the cooking by placing 5 slices of bacon lardons pieces onto a baking sheet in a 400 degree oven. Bacon lardons are just bacon pieces cut into ½ inch segments.

After about 15 minutes, the bacon will be golden brown and the fat will have rendered out into the pan. Remove the bacon and set on a paper towel lined plate. We’ll add them to the rest of the ingredients later, but to keep them crispy I get better results when they are cooked solo.

In the same pan as the bacon fat, so ahead and toss in the brussel sprouts and grape tomatoes. Add salt and pepper or chili flakes. Toss until everything is coated with the grease and a little shiny. If you prefer not to use bacon, you can just toss with olive oil instead.

Put in the oven and cook for about 35 minutes. After about 15-20 minutes, mix everything up to prevent sticking to the pan.

It’ll be ready when the brussel sprouts have a nice char on them and the tomatoes start to wilt.  Place in your favorite serving dish and garnish with the reserved bacon.

And that’s it! A super delicious and tasty treat to be enjoyed during Thanksgiving, or any day you want!