Parmesan Garlic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

First, let me say that if this all comes across a little wonky, I'm sorry, but I took some Dayquil this morning, and it tends to make me a little loopy.

My husband and I are generally pretty boring with vegetables. Out of convenience, both is time and size, we make a lot of those Green Giant boxed vegetables, focusing more on the main dish than the sides. As much as I enjoy those veggies, especially because they are so simple and my husband cannot screw them up, lately I'm been bored of them, and decided we need to eat more variety when it comes to veggies.

If you eat all your veggies out of boxes and bags, you may think you don't like Brussels sprouts. I was sure I didn't like them. They were always slimy and tasted "too green." Then, I learned that Brussels sprouts can be cooked in ways that DON'T cause them to be mushy and gross. This recipe turns out sprouts that are tender without being mushy, and with the addition of garlic and cheese, have a completely different taste than those Brussels sprouts you ate as a child. Everyone should give Brussels sprouts a second chance, because these truly were delicious. Served with a simple chicken, they really added to the meal.

Roasted Garlic Parmesan Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients:
1 lb Brussels sprouts
2 Tablespoons olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut off bottom on sprout and remove outer leaves. Cut Brussels sprouts into quarters or halves, depending on size.
2. Mix oil and garlic in a medium bowl. Lightly toss sprouts in the oil mixture.
3. Pour sprouts and oil into a glass 9 x 13 baking dish. Sprinkle parmesan cheese even across the top.
4. Bake 35-50 minutes, until centers are tender, stirring about every 10 minutes. If sprouts begin to char before being tender, cover dish with foil.

Easy Homemade Veggie Broth

I hate wasting money. In fact, I hate spending money AND I hate wasting money. Because of this, I have starting making my own vegetable broth. This broth saves on money, uses things that are usually wasted, and cuts way down on the sodium going into most of my recipes. This isn't so much a recipe, though, but more like guidelines.

How to make vegetable broth on the cheap
1. Save scraps of vegetables from other recipes. I save the peels of onions, the stems of broccoli, the ends of carrots, celery leaves, and the tops of green and red peppers mostly. Put them in a freezer bag and keep them in the freezer until you are ready to make your broth.

2. Before vegetables go bad, freeze batches you won't be able to use. I tend to buy bags of carrots and celery that I don't get all the way through, but the smaller bags are more expensive, so I always buy the big bag, and freeze what I won't get through.

3. I make my broth in the Crockpot because, 1. My Crockpot is bigger than any pots I have, and 2. I can leave it go all day and not worry about it. I simply pour my frozen vegetables in and cover them with water. Sometimes I sort through the vegetables a bit, to keep the ratios in check. For example, this last time I went to make broth, I had a lot of broccoli stems, so I left a few out. I think you can never have too many carrots or celery in your broth.

4. Add spices if you feel so inclined. I usually add a bay leaf or two, but nothing else. I like to leave the salt out, and just add salt into individual recipes instead, but you could add salt and pepper too.

5. If using the stove, simmer for 1-2 hours. In the Crockpot, cook on low for 8-10 hours. Cooking time isn't super important, you just want all the veggies to cook and be very soft, so you know you got all the flavors out of them.

6. Let the broth cool a bit before trying to pour it into containers. The way I found easiest (as you can see in the picture) is to place a colander on top of a small bowl and scoop using a measuring cup. I only do about a cup at a time, and press the veggies firmly against the bottom of the colander to get most of the liquid out. Then simply pour the broth into containers and refrigerate or freeze.

The batch I made this weekend made 10 cups of broth, which would cost $10+ from the store. My batch probably cost me less than $1, considering most of it is just scraps that normally get thrown away.