Sunday, February 8, 2015

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Strawberry Dijon Sauce


I recently received a small produce box from Farmbox Direct, a virtual online Organic Farmer's Market delivering amazing products right to your door.


"I started Farmbox Direct with a vision of how food SHOULD be: fresh, local (when mother nature permits), and free from pesticides! Having grown up in a family of farmers and living on a farm, I spent summers working at my uncle’s compost in the Midwest, learning how to live off the land, and the benefits of local and organic food! You could say the foundation of Farmbox Direct is in my blood!

After I became a mother I really began to pay very close attention to exactly what was in the food not only I was eating, but also what I was feeding my daughter. I was a busy NYC working mom, I didn't always have time to make a weekly trip to my local farmers market to pick up the freshest local, and organic items for my kitchen, I began to realize the true need for this service!


What was in the box!

I decided to step down from the corporate world, and go back to my roots! I personally hand pick every Farm, Artisan, and Vendor we deal with! If it’s not USDA Certified Organic, we do not carry it! We strive to bring you local USDA Certified Organic when Mother Nature permits! My goal is to bring you an Organic Farmers Market in it’s purity to your door!

Our promise is to bring you ONLY USDA Certified Organic Produce, and Local USDA Certified Organic items when Mother Nature permits! All farms we work with use ZERO pesticides on the produce they grow! Our Artisanal items come direct from the Artisan! Our eggs are cage free, free range, and come directly from that Farm. We believe in farm to table, the way food should be! Ashley Tyrner, Farmbox Direct CEO.

Disclaimer: The produce used in this post was provided by Farmbox Direct. All opinions are my own.

Things I personally like about Farmbox Direct:
  • No weekly commitment
  • You can customize up to 5 substitutions each week
  • No registration or membership fees
  • All packing used is recycled and biodegradable
  • All produce is certified organic (All are 100% certified organic and follow the strict USDA standards. Organic is a unique label that can only be placed on a product that has been certified, unlike other labels you might see at your local supermarket).
At this time delivery is not available to all states, however, it is the goal of Farmbox Direct to expand their delivery area in the very near future.

My box arrived early on a Friday morning and everything inside the box was perfectly wrapped and still cold due to an ice pack on the bottom. The smaller fruits or veggies were protected by being packed in a smaller box. Some of the veggies were inside green veggie bags (I'm keeping those to use to store the veggies in the refrigerator).

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts
3 tablespoons good olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Sauce

3 tbsp. strawberry jam 
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Heat strawberry jam in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Mix in remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth. Remove from heat. Drizzle over top of roasted Brussels sprouts.



Method
Preheat oven to 400. Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves.

Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 25-35 minutes or until they are crisped on the outside and tender on the inside.

Stir around from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly.

Sprinkle with more kosher salt, if desired, and serve immediately with sauce drizzled over top.

Enjoy,

Mary

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