Honey Garlic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Sooooo, I have a confession to make. I’ve never cooked with brussels sprouts until this week.

Crazy, I know. There has just always been something about them that not only didn’t make me want to cook with them, but I also really didn’t eat them. Whenever I saw them on a table at a meal I skipped them (coming from the girl that always ate extra servings of broccoli & green beans as a kid). It wasn’t until I was at a wedding shower this past summer that I saw a brussels sprouts salad that looked really good and decided to give them a try. It was a chilled salad, but the brussels sprouts had been cooked, and it was DELICIOUS. I don’t know exactly what it was about the salad, but the whole thing was freaking fantastic.

So, I thought, maybe brussels sprouts aren’t that bad?

But… what about warm? They were fantastic in a chilled salad, but warm? I wasn’t too sure.

But for some reason last weekend when I was grocery shopping I picked up the bag of brussels sprouts from Trader Joe’s and decided to give it a shot.

I knew they would make a great side dish (especially for the upcoming holidays!) so I wanted to get a bit creative with the flavor. I assume that they aren’t too tasty on their own? I reached for my easy-pour bottle of Nektar Honey Crystals, olive oil, and garlic powder and gave it all a stir before roasting them in the oven.

Hey, it turns out these roasted brussels sprouts are actually really good!

I ended up snacking on these a lot since I made them and will definitely be experimenting around more with flavors too. I loved the garlic in this dish, but I also loved the sweetness from the Nektar Honey Crystals! They provided just the right amount of sweetness to offset the garlic and they combined for a delicious flavor.

And now that I am a fan of brussels sprouts, I am going to make it a point this holiday season to make my family fans too. This side dish would make for the perfect dish alongside Christmas dinner!