Sprout & Pea

Until a few days ago, hazel­nuts were rather for­eign to me. It’s a nut that for one rea­son or another, I have never exper­i­mented with in the kitchen. That all changed when I was prepar­ing a rather bland salad at work and was kindly offered some of the pro­tein packed nuts to help liven up my greens. I was amazed at how much they enhanced my bor­ing lunch in fla­vor and tex­ture and how sat­is­fied I felt from a light meal. So on my way home that night, I picked some up and started toss­ing around ideas of how I might incor­po­rate them into my dinner.

I came up with what is pic­tured above and what is also now one of my favorite dishes. I’ve made pasta with brus­sels sprouts before, but some­thing about the tex­ture and fla­vor of these slightly sweet nuts brought this meal to a whole new level. They’re packed with healthy vit­a­mins, min­er­als, pro­tein, fiber and fats too. After a lit­tle research, I also learned that they con­tain flavonoids which may sup­port brain health, improve cir­cu­la­tion and reduce symp­toms asso­ci­ated with aller­gies. Be it for a snack, salad or big meal, grab some hazel­nuts, enjoy and exper­i­ment. Here’s how to make the pasta…

1 cup quinoa pasta
Water for boil­ing pasta
1 cup semi-​​crushed toasted hazel­nuts
1 cup shred­ded brus­sels sprouts
2 tbs but­ter or vegan but­ter
Lit­tle less than 1/​8 cup dry white wine
Salt and pep­per to taste
Grated parme­san /​ grana padana if desired

While the pasta is boil­ing, add brus­sels sprouts to but­ter in a medium pan and sauté for a few min­utes over medium-​​high heat. Add the white wine and sauté over medium heat for another minute or two. Add hazel­nuts and con­tinue to mix in pan over low-​​medium heat. Strain pasta and pour ingre­di­ents in pan over the pasta. Sea­son with salt and pep­per to taste and top with some grated grana padana.