Manhattan is filled with over twenty thousand restaurants, and it can be hard figuring out where to go for dinner on a Saturday night. Sometimes you just have to pick a neighborhood, walk around, and stumble upon something along the way. This happened on Saturday. After a day at the MET and drinks at one of my favorite rooftops, Empire Hotel, we decided to head a little closer to home for dinner. That’s when we stumbled upon Cotta Osteria in the Upper West Side. I’ve walked past it a million times, but never thought to try it. As soon as I walked in the door I knew this was going to become my new favorite wine bar. We sat at the bar and coming from someone who used to bartend, the best service is at the bar, and you get to enjoy yourself and not feel rushed. From the ambience to the wine to the pizza to the great prices, it’s a great local spot. They have happy hour during the week which includes buy one get one free glasses of wine. If the Sicilian wine is on the list, that could be trouble. In a good way of course.
Enough about the wine. Let me tell you about the pizza. It’s served Italian style. I never really understood this until my husband went to Italy. They eat a whole pie by themselves. I thought this was crazy until I found myself eating a whole pie Saturday night. The pizzas are small with a thin, flaky crust. It’s like getting your own personal pizza without all the bread dough. It’s all about the toppings. The stand out pizza of the night? Brussels sprouts and pancetta pizza. I love love brussels sprouts. The pizza was topped with mounds of shaved brussels sprouts and salty pancetta with mozzarella and parmesan. It was heaven! My husband had the meatball pizza and loved it too.
The first time I tried brussels sprouts was at Blue Hill in Greenwich Village. Blue Hill is a farm to table restaurant that cooks seasonal food. I’ve been twice, and the brussels sprouts still stand out in my mind. It was a side dish of brussels sprouts leaves and pistachios. Very simple, but so good. After all this time, I finally made them, and wanted to share them with you. They are just as good as I remember.
I included the cores as well as the leaves to add more body to the dish, and I really don’t like wasting food.
Trim the ends of the brussels sprouts. Cut them in half. Then thinly slice them.
Pistachios add a nice crunchy texture.
And with a little lemon juice…perfection.
Brussels Sprouts with Pistachios and Lemon
adapted from Epicurious
The key to eliminating the bitterness that brussels sprouts sometimes tend to have is seasoning them well with salt.
serves 4
Ingredients
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small shallot, finely diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound brussels sprouts, trimmed, halved and thinly sliced
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup pistachios, shelled
juice of 1 small lemon
Directions
In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallot and garlic, and saute for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the brussels sprouts, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, and a pinch of black pepper. Saute for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the pistachios and saute for another 2 to 3 minutes until the brussels sprouts soften. Add the lemon juice and stir. Remove pan from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl.
This sounds fantastic. Will try this at once.
looks and sounds amazing! going to tell my mom to try it for our dinner party! :)
Do you mind stopping by my blog? Its new and i would really appreciate your opinion! i just put up a healthy mug brownie btw! :)
Thanks so much!!
i’ve always loved the ‘sprouts’. even the frozen variety. thaw them out. cut in half. add olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. enjoy.
I can’t wait to try this recipe! It sounds so delicious. I always sauté my brussels sprouts with bacon, shallots and fig vinegar, so I’m excited to try something new. Thanks for sharing and congrats.
I don’t know which I liked more, the recipe or the food . Great job!
Memories. Food memories.
It’s very nice and Delicious food, thanks.
http://resultsweb.in/
Yum, I do love a new recipe for brussel sprouts! The pistachios are a great touch.
This sounds so easy and delicious! I love brussels sprouts…I’m not sure why that’s always been the go-to for “gross vegetable that you should eat because it’s good for you”. I don’t know where people got gross from :)
Me neither! Brussels sprouts get such a bad rap. My husband is the pickiest of eaters, and it’s his favorite vegetable :)
awesome post!! :-) this looks delicious!!
You made me hungry reading this blog :)
Also im coming up to New York soon and will keep the Cotta Osteria in mind
I usually shave my brussel sprouts in a food processor and roast them. I’ve never sautéed them…but that’s going to have to change! These look delicious -thanks for sharing!
I love love LOVE brussel sprouts — thanks for the great recipe! ;)
Mmm I had never even thought about brussel sprouts on a pizza! Your recipe sounds delicious. There’s a restaurant in DC (http://www.zaytinya.com/) that turned me into a brussel sprouts fanatic…brussels sprouts, coriander seed, barberries, garlic yogurt. Yum!
I took a look at their menu, and everything sounds so good. I’m actually going to DC in a couple of weeks to visit family. Thanks for the suggestion.
Wow. Until I came to this blog I didn’t think there were three people in the world who loved Brussel Sprouts! You learn something new everyday.
Have you ever seen brussels sprouts in the garden? My husband decided to grow them this year, so we’ve been very interested in how weird it is. Anyway, in about a month from now, we’re going to have more brussels sprouts than we know what to do with. I’m planning on freezing some, but would like to use as much of them while they’re fresh as I can. This recipe (and the idea with them on a pizza) sounds excellent! I will definitely be trying it when our sprouts are ready.
I have never seen brussels sprouts in a garden. You are so lucky! I wish I had a garden because they’re on the grocery list every week we love them so much :)
I will take some pictures and post them later so you can see. It is really weird – I’ve never seen anything grow like this before.
It is very interesting food :)
Three of my favorite foods are in this lovely dish…I will definitely make it….thank you!
This looks so amazing…
This looks amazing. I’ve always loved roasting brussel sprouts with pancetta – but I love the idea of the pistachios and a little lemon. SO glad you were “Freshly Pressed”!!!!!
xo
Nicole
http://www.hourglassandbloom.wordpress.com
I love Brussels sprouts, I usually just saute with olive oil and maybe a pinch of sugar, so I am definitely going to try this, thanks!
Inspired me to cook more sprouts! Yeay!
Gorgeous – I’ll certainly make this x
I’ll be trying this soon! Also, your blog is so beautiful!! Count me as a new fan :)
Thanks so much! I’m excited to read your blog as well :)
Looks like very yummy! :) Now I’m getting hungry :D
Sounds delicious! I’m a big fan of simple dishes that let the ingredients really sing. Fresh picked brussel sprouts are the best, hardly bitter and they don’t get mushy. I’ll give this one a shot!
That pizza sounds amazing too!
This sounds like a great way to enjoy Brussels sprouts. Funny your post started talking about pizza because one of the first recipes I blogged about was a Brussels sprout pizza! I have been putting pistachios in everything lately, so all I need to do is buy some sprouts and get to it.
Yours is the first recipe I have seen for brussel sprouts. I have never fixed them this way. I will.
Your review of Cotta Osteria sounds yummy. I’ll have to stop in.
I’ve never eaten brussels sprouts; this sounds like a cool recipe – might have to try this. Thanks for posting:)
yem yem yemmi . I love that recipe .
Lemon gives wonderful taste to brussel sprouts.
Thank u
I love Brussels sprouts too. This recipe looks delish!
Reblogged this on Dancing with Fireflies and commented:
Oh I am in love!
I confess to not being the biggest brussels sprout fan but I have to say the thought of pairing them with pistachios seems like an inspired idea!
Love brussel sprouts! I am so open to new recipes with them! This sounds good!
Love this! Not only finding a way to yummy up brussel sprouts, but your whole blog! Would love to have you as a “guest” on my blog in one of my food segments that I have coming up. http://www.phlyfitmama.com Looking forward to reading more of your stuff! :) Heather
WOW- This sounds wonderful! I just became friends with brussels sprouts in the past year, and I am making up for lost time. Can’t wait to try this one!
Had such a craving for brussel sprouts today…. thanks, haha!
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I love Brussels sprouts and this looks like a really simple and delicious way to prepare them! Nice to find your blog on Freshly Pressed! Love your food & photos!
Thanks :)
Sounds like a recipe I will have to try. Always looking for vegetarian recipes. Grats on being Freshly Pressed, mad it easier to find you.
Thanks so much!
Love Brussels sprouts. Can’t wait to try them with pistachios. Congratulations on being freshly pressed.
Thank you!
Looks delicious and I bet it tastes delicious too. I’m a big fan of the sprouts and you can find my recipes here:
http://shaanthz.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/pan-seared-brussels-sprouts/
http://shaanthz.wordpress.com/2012/03/11/lemony-brussels-sprouts-with-lima-beans/
Yummy!
That looks delicious!
Great pictures and delicious recipe!
Sounds delicious (mm)
Reblogged this on Muguet's Blog and commented:
And here is tonight’s dinner (mm)
looks delicious … will try
Love this! Sounds absolutely divine!
Well, I know what I’m making this evening!
awesome! this sounds delicious!!! i love lemon on everything and i’m a big fan of brussel sprouts soi’m definitely trying this one out. thanks for sharing! x
mmmm, brussels sprouts. I will have to try this one. :-)
Double hit on Freshly Pressed?! Awesome! Apparently your post is a model for getting a recipe freshly pressed. That rocks Jen! Congratulations – again!!
Thanks!
Thank you for sharing ,i like nice post
This looks so good! I’ll definitely have to give it a try this weekend! Great photos as well! Thanks for the post. Looking forward to the next!
Pizza with brussels sprouts sounds delicious! Would love to try that. Congrats for being on Freshly Pressed.
I love Brussel Sprouts. Growing up, I was the wierd kid that ate everything all the other kids hated. LOL. Too funny. Great recipe and poste. :)
I wonder if this recipe will convert my anti-brussel-sprout-eating husband. This looks delish! Thanks for sharing. :)
This Brussels sprouts recipe looks fabulous. Will have to try it soon! Thanks for the inspiration!
I’m somewhat amazed (and delighted) that so many people love Brussel sprouts as much as I do. I’ve always just steamed them and added a bit of salt, but this recipe sounds marvelous. Here in Hawaii we can’t find them at our store in the summer, but as soon as they’re back on the shelves, I’m trying this.
Your photographs are stunning. Your brussel sprouts with pistachios and lemon sound delicious and perfect for a warm autumn afternoon. The pizza you had in Manhatten covered with thin slices of brussels sprouts and salty pancetta reminds me a little of something which my Christmas dinner wouldn’t be the same without, a dish of halved sprouts, salty pancetta, roasted chestnuts and butternut squash. Thanks for sharing your fabulous recipe
I love that you paired pistachios with the brussels sprouts! It’s unexpected, but also sounds fantastic, and nice to have a new fresh take than the go-to classic pairing with bacon.
Looks delicious … I am definitely going to try this
Just made this tonight! Awesome! Even my kids liked it. It’ so pretty looking too :). Thanks!
So glad you liked it. That is awesome your kids liked it too. Especially when it comes to brussels sprouts :)
I’ve always thought the brussel sprout was under rated. I mean how can you go wrong with something so beautifully green! :)
Marti
Reblogged this on An American in Australia and commented:
My new favorite recipe for brussels sprouts – so crisp and balanced. One change: added shaved parmesan. Even Steve loved it, sans bacon!
Looks great. People need to stop hating on brussels sprouts and simply learn to make them properly. When done well, they are truly yummy.
I love all these ingredients and have never put them together before. This is one I’ll definitely make. I think a splash of white wine thrown in near the end could add an interesting flavor as well. I’d also add grated Parmesan cheese, and unhulled sesame seeds which add fiber, protein and calcium, and a touch of iron. These last two items I would add after plating to mix in a raw element. Bon appetit!
And vegan to boot! Magic! :-)
I love brussel sprouts. Thanks for the great recipe.
Can’t wait to try this
I just had to let you know that the balsamic bruessl sprouts were amazing. I improvised a little added a touch of bacon grease to the olive oil and sprinkled some fresh-grated parmesan just before serving.My kids, generally, refuse to eat any kind of cabbage, but they actually ate the sprouts and got seconds!!
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Congratulations on being selected for Freshly Pressed! I learned a lot from the reviewer’s comments. Now, I insert larger pictures and more personal copy. Glad I could learn from you! http://ohtheplaceswesee.com
Reblogged this on Appleledge II.
I don’t generally like Brussels Sprouts but these look fantastic! I can’t wait to try them… Thanks
Reblogged this on A.R.C.A. and commented:
This will make an awesome side dish with any fish recipe!
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I am trying this! I love brussels sprouts but they are always a bit stinky when steamed. This way I never tried before. Thank you!
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I just made this dish and it was delicious! I added toasted Sesame oil though (because I am obsessed with it) and it made a whirlwind of difference! I love this recipe and will be using it every chance I get. Thanks for the great food.
Wow. What great pictures are included with this receipe for brussel sprouts with my favorite– pistacio nuts. Sounds wonderful and also good on pizza–without the pistacio nuts of course. And if you like that try artichokes on pizza too. Brussel sprouts look just like cute mini cabbages. Love the hint of a little salt for the bitterness. Will definitely try this recipe. It sounds like a real meal with a few sauted shrimp and some good buttered warm bread. Oh and i plan on added some toasted sesame oil as suggested by riannoncelley. Mmmmm.
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I hate brussel sprouts… but these look amazing! It might make a nice side dish for christmas… Thanks for the idea :)
-JulieC
yummyyyyyyyyy ! i ll definitely going to try this :)
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