So much is going on in this seemingly simple beer butter roasted medley of cranberries and Brussels sprouts. Definitely a dish with the power to brighten up the usual suspects line up of your holiday table.
We made the beer butter with Belgian tripel - one of the most food friendly beer styles in existence.
If you have never used Belgian tripel as a flavoring agent in your cooking - marrying it with butter is a great starting point. Easy execution and versatile applications. Just make a beer butter roasted something with it. Could be sweet potatoes like these, or a mix of root vegetables - some parsnips, carrots, purple potatoes, beets. Fruit too.
Alternatively, use the Belgian triple beer butter as a pan sauce for chicken breast. Or coat nuts in it and then roast them. Or dip crab meat in it. Soooo many possibilities.
I love the gorgeous colors of this dish and their holiday season look alikeness, but have to tell you that the aromas are even more striking. Captivating would be a good word to describe the olfactory situation. I can imagine that our oven was only too happy to assist in drawing them out. And once out of the oven and onto the serving platter there comes the very faint but firmly present scent of the charred outer leaves of the Brussels sprouts.
For these beer butter roasted cranberries and Brussels sprouts we used a new brew from New Belgium Brewing Co., just recently released. A bottle conditioned Honey Orange Tripel (a lot of Belgian tripel style ales are bottle conditioned).
Both the honey and the orange peel are present, noticeably. However, keep in mind that due to the type of yeast used to ferment Belgian tripels, they typically deliver orange peel and honey on the nose anyways, so any beer of this style should work in this recipe. Plus, to offset the natural tartness of the cranberries, we coated them with a tablespoon of honey and once plated, we drizzled more honey for extra sweetness and added orange zest. Such a fragrant dish.
If you choose to, you can roast a few orange slices and use them as garnish. They will get nicely caramelized and release a ton of citrusy aromas while in the oven.
Pairing this dish with the same style ale is a no-brainer. Belgian tripels are so easy to drink despite being quite potent, with their great carbonation, candied orange flavor notes and dry finish. Chris and I love to drink them during the colder months of the year. They are best enjoyed at what are referred to as cellar temperatures - between 50 and 55 °F. And their affinity for aged cheeses is outstanding.
We sincerely hope that some beer butter roasted cranberries and Brussels sprouts make it to you table while cranberries are in season. If you want a spicy touch to the dish, consider using hot honey (affiliate link) to drizzle over the dish instead of regular honey .
Recipe
Belgian Tripel Butter Roasted Cranberries & Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients
- 1 lb Brussels sprouts
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- ½ stick butter
- 6 oz Belgian tripel ale
- 1 tablespoon honey plus more to drizzle over plated dish
- zest of one orange zest at the time of serving
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Rinse the Brussels sprouts and cranberries, trim the stems of and cut in half any larger Brussels sprouts.
- Blanch the Brussels sprouts in a boiling pot of water with salt added (about 3 min), then remove and strain.
- In a small sauce pan over medium high heat bring the Belgian triple to simmer and let reduce by half.
- Turn the heat down to medium low and add the butter. Stir a few times as it melts into the beer reduction.
- Remove from heat and let cool off.
- Turn the oven on to 425°F.
- In a mixing bowl combine the cranberries and drained Brussels sprouts. Season with salt and pepper. Add the 1 tablespoon of honey and the cooled off Belgian tripel butter. Mix well to evenly coat the cranberries and Brussels sprouts.
- Spread over a large parchment paper lined baking sheet (or two quarter sheets) and roast for 20-25 minutes.
- Serve on a shallow platter, drizzle with extra honey, sprinkle fresh orange zest and enjoy.
Nutrition
CraftBeering
Thank you, Lianne! I think that they will look so good on a Christmas table:)
karrie / Tasty Ever After
I meant to comment on this last week & I forgot!! These Brussels sprouts are beautiful and love that you used Belgian beer (cos that's my fav) 🙂 I usually just roast my Brussels sprouts but I'm trying this recipe next time I make them! Hope you and the family had a wonderful Thanksgiving 🙂
CraftBeering
Lol, too funny! Thank you Karrie. Belgian beers are seriously the most food friendly styles!
Amber Harrop
These look so good and I am saying that about brussel sprouts of all things
CraftBeering
Lol:) Not the best loved veggie, are they? Thank you, Amber.
Heather
This recipe sounds delicious and simple. We love Brussels sprouts! We'd have to use cider though, my boyfriend is allergic to beer.
CraftBeering
Thank you so much Lisa!
Roseann Hampton
What a great addition to the Thanksgiving menu!
CraftBeering
Especially when craft beer fans are seated around it:)Thank you, Roseann.
Georgie | The Home Cook's Kitchen
gorgeous photo and gorgeous recipe! love the colours! looks perfect for a thanksgiving or christmas side!
CraftBeering
Thank you so much Georgie!
annie@ciaochowbambina
Christmas on a platter right there! The colors are stunning and I'm a huge fan of Brussels - we just roasted some up last night, as a matter of fact! This will add to the beauty of every holiday table!
CraftBeering
Thank you!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
I discovered the beauty that is Brussels sprouts combined with cranberries a while back and I can't imagine eating them any other way now 🙂 Beautiful!
Kelsie | the itsy-bitsy kitchen
YASSSSS! We always do Brussels for Christmas and I'm really hoping I can convince my family to try these :). (They're not always adventurous at the holidays.) The colors, the flavors, everything about this is calling to me! Have a great weekend, Milena!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Yes! The colours of this one are stunning! And so many delicious flavours and so much to love. Honestly, I could call this dinner all by itself and be very happy! I always go for those little charred bits when I'm roasting anything. Pinned! Cheers to a wonderful weekend 🙂
satyakam
wow...i really enjoyed your recipe & this looks so good and many colorful. i can't wait make this. Thanks for sharing...!