Eat Write Love
NICKY AND SONJA of Creative Concoctions – a local social enterprise, boosting creative health.
This recipe is going to stop the haters – the sprout haters! A bold claim but we stand by our Christmassy sprout gratin recipe to turn hearts and heads!
It’s time to grab your sprouts and your journal and pen. Let’s turn this poor little veg, often left on the shelf, into the party starter …
Journaling #1: Write the word sprout down your page like this:
- S
- P
- R
- O
- U
- T
Now write the first word or phrase that comes into your mind when you think of sprouts, starting with the initial letter, eg S – stinky
Fun Facts:
As well as lemons and limes, Captain Cook gave his sailors sprouts to prevent scurvy – because they have so much vitamin C.
The UK eats more sprouts than anywhere else in Europe – with our sprout fields being the equivalent of more than 3000 football pitches.
Cutting a cross in the bottom of a sprout is nothing to do with cooking your sprout, but rather an old superstition that it would drive the away evil spirits which lived in the vegetables!
In 2008, Linus Urbanec achieved the stomach-churning record of consuming 31 sprouts in 60 seconds!
Abnormal temperatures in the UK in 2017 led to sprout plants growing taller than usual and producing so-called ‘monster sprouts’.
Nutrition info:
One serving contains:
- Four times the amount of vitamin C of an orange – great for supporting the immune system to fight those winter colds and flu.
- Vitamin K – which supports heart health and blood clotting.
- A range of B vitamins which support energy production, healthy skin and hair, brain health and anxiety management.
Christmassy Sprout Gratin
Serves 6 as a side dish, or 4 as a main
Ingredients:
- 400g sprouts, peeled and halved
- 250g chestnuts
- 1 carrot, peeled and cut into batons
- 1 onion, sliced
- 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried)
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 6 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 30g butter
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 200ml milk
- 1 tsp English mustard (optional)
- 100g cheddar cheese, grated
- 20g dried cranberries, chopped
Method:
- Prepare the chestnuts: you can use ready-cooked chestnuts, but fresh ones are usually cheaper and are not difficult to prepare. If using ready cooked ones, just slice them. If using fresh ones: score the rounded side of each chestnut and place on a baking tray. Cook in the oven at 180°C for 30 minutes.
- Take out of the oven and cover the tray with another baking tray, or a plate – this will enable the chestnuts to steam and make peeling them much easier. When cooled, peel and slice.
- Meanwhile, prepare the onion, carrot and sprouts and steam for about 8 minutes – you want the sprouts to be still green and have a little crunch.
- Add the chestnuts to the vegetables when ready and put them all into a baking dish.
- Make a simple cheese sauce: Melt the butter in a saucepan and then add the flour slowly, mixing thoroughly the whole time, until the mixture forms a thick paste. Gradually, add the milk, and as before, keep stirring to avoid lumps.
- Once the milk is all mixed in, you should have a creamy white sauce. Add about ¾ of the cheese to the sauce and mix in well.
- Season, and if you want, you can also add a tsp of English mustard. Mix in well and pour your cheese sauce over the vegetables and chestnuts.
- Add the thyme and bay leaves into the dish and mix through.
- Add the remaining cheese to your breadcrumbs and cranberries and sprinkle them over the top of the dish.
- Bake in the oven for around 25 minutes until the top is golden brown and crunchy.
- Serve alongside your Christmas dinner. (Don’t forget to remove the bay leaves when serving.)
Serving Suggestions
- As a side dish or great on its own.
- Serve with potatoes and vegetables of your choice for a main meal, or just on its own for a lighter supper.
Substitutes
- No sprouts? Use parsnips and other root veg.
- No chestnuts? Use walnuts or hazelnuts.
- Don’t like cheese sauce? Use white sauce.
Storage
You can make the vegetable mix and gratin topping separately in advance, put them together for cooking on the day if you want to get ahead of the game. If you have leftovers, just store in the fridge and warm through when you want to eat it. It should be fine for about 3 days.
Journaling #2: ‘Tis the Season to be… [5 mins]
Bring to mind a happy Christmas meal from the past or one that you would love to have now. Write from a place of gratitude and joy: think of the faces around that table; recall the dishes (maybe sprouts) as they were passed around; think of the little rituals that went into that meal or the sayings people would always say.
Reflect [1 min]
What moment of happiness from that memory could you bring into this year’s holiday season?
Journaling #3: Action!
What favourite Christmas snacks or Boxing Day leftovers could you introduce a sprout twist to? Go wild – write a list of seven without stopping!
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