Day 2: BRUSSEL SPROUTS

I'll keep this "alphabetical" thing going while I can...plus this happens to be the only other vegetable left in my fridge! Looks like I'll be going to the grocery store tomorrow...

Brussel sprouts have a notoriously bad reputation...I remember refusing to eat them at a friend's house when I was young, and still hadn't touched them until about a year ago when a coworker prepared them for a dinner party and I was obligated to fork a few onto my plate. To the skeptic, they may smell sulfurous or taste bitter. But stripped of the yellow outer leaves and cooked properly, they lose their funk and the densely packed centers' "meaty" quality makes them very satisfying (you'll learn that I'm all about satiety).



HOW I PREPARED THEM:

+ rinsed under water and cut in half down the center
+ spread halves on foil-covered baking sheet
+ drizzled olive oil, cracked black pepper, and sea salt over the top
+ baked in the oven at 400 degrees F for 35 minutes

This method leaves them with a bit more of their crunch, rather than steaming which I have also tried and enjoyed.


HOW GOOD THEY ARE FOR YOU:

1 cup of brussel sprouts steamed or baked (not boiled) have:
+ 37 calories
+ less than 1g fat: includes omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids (great unsaturated fats)
+ 3g dietary fiber, 3g protein, and only 2g sugar
+ very low glycemic load (so if you eat them with a more sugar-rich food, this will help to slow down the metabolism of the whole meal!)
+ NO cholesterol, AND some good plant phytosterols
+ a decent amount of potassium, manganese, iron, vitamins A & B, and folate
++ 200% daily value of Vitamin K!! AWESOME!
++ 125% daily value of Vitamin C! - almost as much as 1 orange! and SO much less sugar! (1 orange has 17g sugars)

FUN FACTS:

+ the British consume 6 times more brussel sprouts than Americans (that childhood friend's parents were from England...if I had only known this then, I would have been forewarned from eating dinner at their house...)
+ recent research suggests that one of their nutrients - sinigrin - may prevent colon cancer. This is the same compound responsible for their gaseous smell ;) how ironic
+ cutting an X with your knife at the base of the sprout helps even cooking all the way through to the center


Wow, who knew? Brussel sprouts are awesome, anti-inflammatory foods. I will warn you ahead of time though...they will probably make you gassy, being the cruciferous vegetable that they are! Steaming adequately and chewing well help to reduce gas by helping your body to digest them and allow your GI tract to absorb more of the nutrients :)