Crispy Brussels Sprouts With Bacon And Dried Cherries

This simple Brussels Sprouts With Bacon Recipe makes for a perfect salad or side dish. It's delicious, crunchy, sweet, and salty.

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• About this Recipe
• Equipment Needed
• Ingredients Needed
• Making Crispy Brussels Spout Salad 
• Top Tips + Substitutions 
• More Brussels Sprouts Recipes You Might Like
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

I've had a special fondness of cherries my whole life. More than any other fruit, cherries are by far my favorite. I don't know if it's because they're beautiful fruit or because they taste best only when in season. 

When I lived in Germany, we rented an apartment from a sweet, generous couple on the outskirts of a sleepy village. We shared the house. They had the downstairs and my family the upstairs. It was a decent size place - not big by any means but it was comfortable and we made do. We were used to small living but I don't recall spending much time inside anyway. Even during the coldest of winter days, I would play outside until numbness took hold of my fingers and toes. Back then, the elements didn't have the same hold of me as they do in my adult years. 

But summer...summer was my favorite time of year. Aside from hours spent roaming around on my used white Schwinn, one of my favorite activities was simply hanging in the back yard, daydreaming. On many days, I would climb a cherry tree and help myself until I could eat no more. Suspended above freshly cut grass, there was no sense of time, nothing pressing to get to and no anxieties to indulge. Gazing through branches at a clear, blue sky on a July afternoon, belly full of cherries, was a perfectly acceptable way to pass the time. 

Maybe this is where my love of cherries solidified. Maybe I associate them with carefree summer days, where the sweet smell of warm air in my mind still mixes with the sense of possibility and all is right in the world, if only for a few moments. 

Since cherries are out of season right now, the next best thing is dry cherries. Real, juicy dry cherries with no added sugar. I impulsively bought a few too many and wanted to make something with them aside from eating them by the handful. I had a bunch of Brussels sprouts in the fridge, a few leftover slabs of bacon and this is how this salad was born - crunchy, salty and sweet. This salad is definitely not for the lighthearted. While I'm only using two strips of bacon, I use every single part of the bacon, including the cooking fat, to whip up a delicious dressing. 

Sliced Brussels sprouts work exceptionally well as the base for this salad as they hold up well during cooking releasing all their wonderful flavor!

About this Recipe

• It's paleo and whole 30 
• Can easily be made vegan
• It's gluten, grain, and dairy-free
• Makes for a perfect fall and winter side dish or salad (or anytime)

Equipment Needed

• Cast iron pan or sturdy pan
• Paper towels or regular towels
• Small mixing bowl

Ingredients Needed

• 2 thick slices of bacon cut into small pieces
• 1 16oz package of Brussels sprouts sliced
• 1 shallot finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon dried cherries or cranberries
• 2 tablespoon sliced almonds
• pinch of salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Making Crispy Brussels Spout Salad 

Step 1. Preheat pan on medium and add bacon. Cook until crispy stirring regularly - about 5 minutes. Remove bacon and set on a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve cooking fat in a mixing bowl.

Step 2. In the same pan, add olive oil and shallot and cook for 2 minutes, constantly stirring. Add Brussels sprouts and a pinch of salt. Cook stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. You still want some bite to the Brussels sprouts.

Step 3. Meanwhile, combine leftover bacon fat, mustard, lemon, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and whisk well.

Step 4. Once sprouts are cooked, turn off the heat and add bacon, dressing, cherries, and almonds. Stir well to combine all ingredients. Enjoy.

Top Tips + Substitutions 

Here are some tips and alternatives for making this quick and delicious salad.

Can You Make This Recipe Vegan?

You certainly could. If you wanted to keep it vegan, just use 1 tablespoon olive oil to cook the shallots and Brussels sprouts in and 2 tablespoon for the dressing as a substitute for the bacon fat. And follow the below instructions for the dressing substituting with the olive oil.

What If You Can't Find Dried Cherries?

You could substitute using dried cranberries or raisins and even chopped-up apricots would work. My recommendation is to look for naturally dried fruit without added sugar.

Do You Need Almond Slices?

You could substitute with any other nut of your choice or even seeds if you prefer. Or you can leave them out all together but I find they add an additional crunch that works perfectly in the Brussels sprouts salad.

Can You Use Leeks Instead Of Shallots?

If you don’t like shallots, you can replace them with leeks, which are milder. Just use the white part and finely chop it and use it in place of shallots. Leek cooks pretty quickly as well so it only needs a few minutes.

No matter if you choose the paleo or vegan variation, this salad may just become a staple.

More Brussels Sprouts Recipes You Might Like

• Asian Brussels Sprouts Salad with Sweet Chili Sauce (Vegan)
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic and Crispy Chickpeas (Vegan)
• Maple Roasted Root Vegetables With Dijon And Thyme