Honey Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Oven roasted brussels sprouts with pistachios, dates, and lime in a white bowl.

Honey Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Keyword: Roasted brussels sprouts recipes

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 35

Total Time: 45

Servings: people

Calories: 268kcal

These honey roasted brussels sprouts are out of this world! Middle Eastern flavors make for a new and different way to roast brussels sprouts in this easy recipe!

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Equipment

Ingredients

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

2 pounds small brussels sprouts
2 tablespoon olive oil
kosher salt to taste

Pistachio Date Topping

⅓ cup raw pistachios shelled
⅔ cup chopped dates from whole dates, preferably Medjool
3 tablespoon unsalted butter
zest of one lime
pinch kosher salt

Honey-Lime Glaze

2 ½ tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon water

Instructions

Roast the brussels sprouts

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F
Wash and drain brussels sprouts, trim off the bottom stems.
Place sprouts on a baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil and a pinch or two of kosher salt. Mix them all together so they are evenly coated and bake for 15 minutes.
Remove the sheet pan from the oven and shake so the sprouts move around a bit, and place back into the oven for 5-10 minutes until they are beginning to get very dark.
Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and continue to cook for another 10-15 minutes, until the sprouts are fork tender and have a creamy, soft center. (Mushy in a good way...)

Pistachio Date Topping

While the brussels sprouts roast, chop the dates into ¼ inch pieces. You want them to be about the size of plump raisins.
Heat the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. When it begins to foam, add the dates and pistachios. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes until the pistachios are browned and toasted and your whole kitchen smells like date butter!!
With a spider or a slotted spoon, remove the dates and pistachios to drain on a paper towel. Reserve the butter in the skillet and set aside. DO NOT DISCARD THE BUTTER! WE ARE USING IT IN THE SAUCE!
Once cool, transfer the pistachio/date mixture to a bowl, add a pinch of salt and the lime zest and stir to combine.

Honey Lime Glaze

After the topping is ready, whisk together the honey, lime juice and water and set aside.
Just before the brussels sprouts come out of the oven, heat the leftover butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add the honey-lime mixture to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Allow to reduce slightly.

Assemble the dish

As soon as the sprouts come out of the oven, pour the honey lime glaze over them and mix together so all of the sprouts are coated.
Transfer the roasted sprouts to a serving dish and top with the pistachio/date mixture and serve.

Notes

Use whole dates and chop them for this recipe, preferably Medjool dates if you can find them. They are actually a fresh fruit, so look for them in the cold produce section. Pre-chopped dates sometimes have a coating on them and they are dried. You want plump, chewy dates.
A tip for chopping the dates: keep dates in the fridge right up until you are ready to chop them and they will be much easier to work with. They'll be far less sticky and won't clump together.
Use a good non-stick skillet to prepare the pistachio/date mixture and honey-lime sauce. This will keep everything from burning and sticking so you can get all of the good bits into the dish!
A spider is a handy tool for straining foods out of liquids. I use mine all the time. It's a great tool for transferring pastas and dumplings from hot water into sauces, and for lifting out blanched veggies into an ice bath. If you use a metal spider on your non-stick skillet, just be careful not to scratch the surface!
Total roasting time for the brussels sprouts will depend upon their size. You want the insides to be creamy and mushy - in a good way! And don't worry about them getting too dark, once you reduce the heat to 350 degrees F, the caramelization will pretty much stop, and you'll just be bringing the insides to the desired texture.
Be sure to check out the post above for tips on choosing ingredients.

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