This brussels sprout orrechiette recipe is wrapped up in a creamy, herbed sauce for a hearty, all-in-one vegetarian meal. Dairy free and delicious!
I planted my spring garden in February, under a grow light outside my bedroom. Cabbage, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts – twelve starts in total. 2 cabbage plants and 1 brussels sprout survived their indoor infancy and the transplant to the big, bad outdoors. It's my second time growing brussels sprouts and I now understand why they are hard to find and usually quite expensive. They are NOT easy to grow. But if I harvest even a few sprouts off my temperamental plant, all my hard work will be worth it.
I've been sitting on this recipe for a while. Not literally sitting, but you know what I mean. Literally, the recipe itself has been proudly sitting on my coffee table inside the spring issue of Edible Indy. And I've been chomping at the bit to share it with you guys. But for the sake of exclusivity, I let the magazine and their readers have first dibs.
Bonus: They liked our recipes so much that they invited us back and asked us to have a repeating column in the magazine with 3 recipes per season! The spring issue was our first time seeing our recipes in print and we are still over the moon about it. Edible Indy is such a fantastic publication with a focus on local, sustainable food and an awesome team of editors – we're thrilled to be working with them!
Each issue, our column will feature recipes that showcase seasonal ingredients in some of our favorite ways. Brussels sprouts aren't quite in season right now, but you can still find them in most grocery stores and this recipe is plenty of reason to do so.
The sprouts are seared to a crisp and the creamy, herby sauce is poured over to fill up all the little layers in each sprout. And then there's the pasta. Why orrechiette, you ask? Their curved, boat-like shape makes them especially effective at delivering the maximum amount of sauce. I've given this a lot of thought, and orrechiette is definitely the way to go.
If you enjoyed this brussels sprout orrechiette recipe let us know in the comments!
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Creamy Brussels Sprout Orrechiette
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6
Description
Crispy, seared brussels sprouts and whole wheat pasta are doused in a creamy, herbed sauce for a hearty, all-in-one vegetarian meal.
Ingredients
Ingredients for sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 1 - 15 oz. can of whole coconut milk [shake well before using]
- ½ cup nutritional yeast (what's nutritional yeast? i'll explain! click here.)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- pinch of cayenne
Ingredients for dish
- 1 ½ pounds brussels sprouts (look for small to medium sprouts if available)
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 cups orecchiette (we used Delallo's whole wheat)
- water & salt for cooking pasta
Instructions
- You’ll be making the sauce first for this recipe: In a small skillet, heat olive oil to medium and sauté garlic for 3-5 minutes until fragrant and golden brown.
- In a blender, add garlic, coconut milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and seasonings. Blend until well combined. The sauce will look runny, but it will thicken once it’s incorporated with the rest of the dish later. Set aside for now.
- Prepare brussels sprouts. Remove the outermost leaves and give the sprouts a good rinse. Chop about ¼” off at the base of each sprout, just enough to remove the tough base, but not too much. You want to keep the sprout in-tact and keep the leaves from falling off. Chop the sprouts in half vertically.
- In a large pot, start boiling water for pasta. Be sure to add salt – I recommend about 1 tablespoon for tasty pasta.
- Heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil to medium in a large cast-iron skillet.
- Carefully place brussels sprouts into the pan face-down and cook for 5 minutes. Use a spoon to gently move them around to prevent sticking, while keeping them face down.
- After 5 minutes, add 1 ½ tablespoons of white wine vinegar and start stirring the brussels. They should be looking browned and crispy. Continue cooking for 10 minutes, stirring often, until brussels sprouts are tender. Leave them in the pan and remove from heat.
- The pasta and brussels sprouts should finish around the same time. Once finished, drain the pasta and set aside.
- Pour the sauce into the pan, then add the pasta and heat to medium-high. Stir until everything is well-coated and hot. The sauce should start to thicken after being combined with the other ingredients.
- Serve immediately, garnished with fresh herbs or a light sprinkle of parmesan cheese.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Category: Main
I made this with macaroni because I didn't have any orrechiette. I also used only 1/4 c of nutritional yeast because I don't like it to be overpowering.
We all loved this!
Yay! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe and that macaroni works as a substitute!
Delicious! All the non-vegans I've made this for love it too.
★★★★★
Yay! Thanks for the feedback – glad it was a hit!
Rr; creamy brussels sprout orrechiette - Please make suggestions to replace the nutritional yeast and the coconut milk. Thanks
Hi Melinda – Since the coconut milk is the base for the sauce, it would be very difficult to replace it and have the dish taste the same. You could certainly try using whole milk and parmesan instead, if you are not lactose intolerant/vegan.
I made this tonight for my daughter and I, the sauce didn't thicken enough. It was rather soupy. I was also hoping for more of a cheesy flavor. Should I use less milk and more NY?
★★
Hi Sara –
I'm sorry it didn't work out well. Yes, next time I would suggest less milk and more nooch!
My family loves this recipe. As a former vegan I love nutritional yeast and the sauce is the bomb. Since we also love bacon, I may have cooked some prior to cooking the Brussel sprouts and may have cooked the Brussel sprouts in bacon grease. I also used a lentil blend rigatoni, which worked well.
★★★★★
Oh yum! I love the idea of adding bacon to this recipe. I bet it really amped up the flavor! Thanks for taking the time to leave feedback. <3
What is nutritional yeast? Where would I get this?
Hi Cody -
It's a natural yeast that grows on molasses and is then harvested and dehydrated. It has a cheesy, salty taste with actually being cheese! You can find it in most any health/natural food store. Hope this helps!
Sounds really good. Thank you Jordan.
Enjoy, Liz!