Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts

Yes, I made brussels sprouts, the icky green vegetable that everyone loves to hate. They can smell pretty bad and, yes, there is such a thing as being too healthy because too-healthy things usually don't taste good. But these do. As a picky eater, I have found that there are two ways to make things taste better. First, I cook them myself. If I know what's in something, I'm not afraid of what I'm eating. Second, I smother them in things I do like. In this case, that's bacon because there's one way to make anything taste good, it's adding copious amounts of bacon. Add a nice dose of maple syrup and you won't even realize you're being healthy.

These brussels sprouts start by cooking the bacon. That's right; you're not only eating bacon, you're cooking everything in the bacon fat to make sure that smokey, salty goodness permeates every bite. You take the bacon out so that it doesn't get overcooked, then cook the garlic, habanero, and brussels sprouts in the fat to make everything nice and crispy. Add the bacon back into the pan with the maple syrup, but be careful not to burn the maple syrup since you do want to caramelize the brussels sprouts without making them charred and bitter. Ideally, the brussels sprouts will be sweet, salty, and spicy, the perfect dish for Thanksgiving or any night of the year.

3 Cups Brussels Sprouts, Halved
4 Strips Bacon
1 Clove Garlic, Minced
1/2 Habanero, Minced
3 T Butter

3 T Maple Syrup

Cook the bacon in a large skillet until crispy. Remove and chop, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the butter to the bacon fat.

Cook the brussels srpouts in the skillet until the brussels sprouts are tender, about 12 minutes, adding the garlic and habanero about halfway through. Season with salt and pepper, then add the maple syrup. Cook until caramelized, about 3 minutes.

Serves 6
Recipe Adapted from Authentic Suburban Gourmet

Pumpkin White Chocolate Biscotti

I'm convinced biscotti are the perfect dessert for this time of year. They make great gifts, they store well, and you can make them any flavor to suit any taste. This recipe is particularly good for the holiday season because it's full of pumpkin. You can find pumpkin in your latte, pumpkin in your pie, and pumpkin in your Pringles, but I guarantee these biscotti are even better than all of them. 

My pumpkin biscotti are extremely low-fat, but you wouldn't know it. Since biscotti don't need that soft, melt-in-your mouth texture like my peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, you don't need to rival Paula Deen in your butter use. The pumpkin puree provides flavor and moisture without the fat, so you only need a few spoonfuls of oil. The biscotti bake up nice and crunchy with a hint of spice and chunks of sweet white chocolate. They make the perfect gift, if you don't save them all for yourself. Don't feel too bad; as soon as my dad heard they are low-fat, he hoarded the whole batch in his office and refused to share, and my sister followed me around in the kitchen sneaking pieces from the cutting board.

3 3/4 Cups Flour
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 Cups Sugar
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Ginger
1/4 tsp Allspice
1/8 tsp Cloves
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup Pumpkin Puree
2 T Oil
1 T Vanilla

2/3 Cup White Chocolate Chips

Heat oven to 350F and line a cookie tray with parchment.

Combine the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and cloves. Whisk the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and 2 tsp of the spice mixture.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the eggs, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture and fold in the chocolate chips.

Shape the dough into three logs and bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through. Cool, slice, and bake at 300F for 15 minutes or until crunchy.

Makes 36

Recipe Adapted from Spoonful of Flavor

Maple Apple Spice Cake

Sometimes I like to bake in the fall just so I can fill the house with the smell of cinnamon, maple, pumpkin, and toasted pecans. There aren't any pecans or pumpkin in this cake, but I guarantee your house will still smell amazing. 

The maple spice cake is filled with all the spices I associate with fall: cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. The maple syrup compliments them perfectly, and you get to use less sugar because it's so sweet. The cake is still not overly sweet, which allows you to top it with the sautéed apples and even a scoop of ice cream (caramel ice cream would be fantastic) without going into a sugar coma. 

The apples are cooked in some butter and brown sugar until just tender; they shouldn't be mushy, but they shouldn't be crunchy, either. You can throw in a pinch of cinnamon for some more flavor or add some more sugar for more of a caramel flavor. I think two apples is enough because I want to taste the cake, too, but you can double or even triple the recipe. Any apples you don't use would be great layered with some granola and yogurt or ice cream for parfaits or just on top of ice cream with some caramel sauce.

2 Granny Smith Apples
1 Stick + 3 T Butter
2/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar
1 1/2 Cups Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp + Pinch Salt
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Allspice
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/8 tsp Cloves
1/2 Cup Maple Syrup
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
1 tsp Vanilla

Heat oven to 350F and line an 8x8" pan with parchment.

Peel and core the apples; cut into wedges. Heat 3T butter in a skillet and add 1/3 cup brown sugar and a pinch of salt. Stir in the apples and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, remaining salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves. Beat the remaining butter and remaining brown sugar in a stand mixr until fluffy. Add the eggs, then beat in the maple syrup, sour cream, and vanilla. Gradually add the flour.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 30 minutes or until cooked through. Top with the apples.

Serves 16
Recipe Adapted from Gourmet