Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Lemon

For my birthday, Alex signed me up for a Cookbook Club class at Williams-Sonoma.  I'd been thinking about finding a cooking class to take but hadn't heard of this particular version.  Each participant in the class is given a cookbook and the instructor/chef cooks a selection of recipes for everyone to try.  The cookbook featured for this class was Healthy in a Hurry.

Awesome present.  Awesome class.  Awesome cookbook.

At the end of three hours, she had cooked six recipes from the cookbook.  All were incredible.  Plus I had paged through the cookbook and found about twenty more recipes that I wanted to try.  I will definitely be looking into taking this class again.  It could make a fun date night too; there were several couples there, and they seemed to be having a great time!

In the meantime, here is one of the recipes that I spotted while in class.  I made it this week as a side to some pork chops - recipe to come later!

Recipe:
brussels sprouts, 1 pound
2 tablespoons olive oil
lemon zest strips from 1/2 a lemon
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
freshly ground pepper to taste

Makes 4 servings

Trim stem ends off brussels sprouts and cut lengthwise into thin slices about 1/4 inch thick.

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.  When oil is hot, add sprouts, lemon zest, salt, and a few grindings of pepper.  Cook, stirring often and keeping heat high but adjusting as needed to prevent scorching, until leaves are lightly browned around the edges and tender, 7-8 minutes.

Stir in lemon juice and cook for 1 minute longer.  Serve right away.

Verdict:
This may be my new favorite way to make brussels sprouts!  They were perfectly tender.  They tasted light and fresh.  They were easy to make (and easy to clean-up).

Fun features of the cookbook include: appetizing picture of the finishes product, per serving nutritional information, and a quick rundown of some of the health benefits in each specific dish.  A serving of these brussels sprouts is 110 calories, 4 grams protein, 11 grams carbs, 7 grams fat, 0 grams cholesterol, 4 grams fiber, and 150 mg sodium.  Brussels sprouts themselves have several health benefits including folate, vitamin C and K, compounds that are thought to detoxify and fight cancer, and are rich in fiber.

My pictures may not have the professional look of the one in the cookbook.  But I could eat this veggie delight every night of the week and feel good doing it!