Brown-Sugar Squash and Brussel Sprouts en Papillote - FFwD

I am enjoying cooking my way through Dorie Greenspan's around my french table.   When the recipe suggestions for November's French Fridays with Dorie were posted, I knew that I could not vote for brussel sprouts.  Evil little cabbages.


My father grew them in our huge backyard garden.  And they grew well.  Towering trees of evil little cabbages.  I think that the groundhogs and rabbits ignored them.


We were a "clean plate" family.  I happened to sit close to the trash can, during brussel  sprouts season, little balls would roll across the table from my five siblings and I would quickly dispose of them and one of my brothers would hurry to empty the trash after dinner.

Every so often, I will run across a brussel sprout lover.  I am always surprised that they exist.  I have tried brussel sprouts.  They are attractive little balls, you would think that they should taste good.  I have roasted them, steamed them, simmered them, pureed them.  With the same conclusion.  Evil little cabbages.


Some how, I continue to find myself drawn to them.  There they were in the grocery store, beautiful looking perfect balls.  I bought them.  Maybe this time I could find the right recipe.  Then I remembered Dorie's recipe.  This recipe was concocted by Dorie solely because the main ingredients were next to each other in the farmers market when she went shopping.  Really, that is how it works for her.

I was hesitant because I don't generally like sugar on my vegetables.  I checked the ingredient list.  I happened to have a butternut squash in the pantry, and granny smith apples had been on sale.  I have a backyard full of sage.  I always have brown sugar, salt, pepper and olive oil.

I peeled and cubed some butternut squash, cut the evil little cabbages in half, cut up an apple and mixed it all together.  I sprinkled the mixture with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Put some of the mixture in the middle of tin foil squares, topped it with sage and the tiniest amount of brown sugar and popped it into the oven.

I liked it.  I amazingly liked it.  I mean if I had a friend who was growing the evil little cabbages and came over to dinner with them, I have a recipe.  This is a weight off my shoulders, at almost the half century mark I can clean those brussel sprouts off my plate!