A little black pepper, warm salad, and Cab Franc

Sometimes, you just want vegetables -- simple vegetables; most often, I turn to a quick salad when such desire occurs.  However as fall becomes increasingly crisp, I find especially in the evening that I crave warmth, thus this evening's offering.  I included the wine at first because, this was to be my "Wednesday with Wine" post after all, but in eating the meal, I found the cab franc nicely enhanced the sweetness and pepperiness of the dish.

Warm Brussels Salad

Servings: 1 light entree portion or 2 side dish portions

Time: 15 min.

1 small sweet potato (shredded on smallest mandoline setting)

1 large carrot  or 2 small carrots (thinly sliced/finely chopped or mandolined,
                                                   as above; scant 1/4 c.)

scant 1/4 c. onion (preferably red, though I used yellow, since it was all I
                                                  had; finely diced or mandolined as above)

8 brussels sprouts (bottom cut off, top layers peeled away, each sprouts
                             thinly sliced into 5-6 pieces)

1 t. oil

salt (1/4-1/2 t.) and pepper (approx.1/2 t.)


1. Lightly oil saute pan to cover; heat over med-high heat.  Once heated, dump in sprout and onion pieces -- sprinkle with salt and pepper; saute for 5-7 min. until lightly browned and onions are softened, then add sweet potato/carrot shreds.  Shuffle around until warmed through or browned as you prefer.  My veggies took about 10-12 min., and they weren't browned to more of a crisp hash brown consistency (though I think that would be awesome for breakfast!).  Taste and add s/p as needed.


Clearly a simple dish, but it hit the spot -- great for slow eating and sipping.   As a bonus, the hub liked it, despite the fact that it had two of his least favorite items (sweet potatoes and brussels).  Hurrah!