Heavenly sprouts

I know a lot of people don't like sprouts. I'm not one of those people, I love to eat them steamed or roasted. However, ever since I saw this recipe (from one of my favourite Finnish food blogs called Kauhaa ja rakkautta) I have wanted to try it out as it simply has to be the most amazing way to cook sprouts. And the blog author claims that she never really liked sprouts before she discovered this recipe. And what is there not to like?!? Sprouts cooked in cream with bacon in there for added flavour. If you are not a fan of sprouts, you should try this out, I am curious to know if there is anyone on this planet who can resist this amazingly good dish.

I hardly ever use cream in my cooking, so this was a really rare treat. And I had almost forgotten what a great flavour it brings to food. So soft, so creamy, so full. Obviously with the bacon and cream, there is no way you can try to convince yourself that this is health food. But this would make a nice side at the Christmas table, or some other festive occasion. Such as in my case a weeknight meal in good company.

Sprouts in cream (serves 2):
400 g sprouts
6 rashers of bacon
150 ml single cream
black pepper
(the original recipe also has 3 cloves of garlic)

The howto:
Remove the stems from the sprouts and cut in half or quarters if the sprouts are big. Finely chop the bacon and cook in a skillet. The original recipe said to cook the bacon in olive oil, but I use a non-stick pan, and the fat from the bacon is in my opinion more than enough without adding any oil. If you are using garlic, cook it with the bacon. Add the sprouts and cook for 5 minutes. Add cream and black pepper to taste (and salt if you think it's needed, but I think the bacon is salty enough). Cook on low heat until the sprouts are tender and the liquid from the cream has evaporated.

The verdict:
I had very high expectations of this dish, and all I can say is that it was probably better than I had imagined. I ate it by the spoonful straight out of the skillet. So I really suggest you make a double serving if you want to have anything left to serve someone else, or even make it all the way to your plate. This is a great dish to serve as a side dish, I served it with Man pleasing chicken. However, if you make a good size serving, you could even serve it as a main dish, or have it for lunch. I have to admit I ate the leftovers after dinner and they were quite delicious cold as well.