Roasted Brussels sprouts meet Caesar salad in this side dish that will likely steal the show from any main dish. This Brussels sprout side dish is bold and familiar, yet comforting and totally new. This dish features crunchy whole-wheat croutons, salty sunflower seeds, a homemade Caesar dressing, and of course, perfectly roasted Brussels sprouts.
Table of Contents
How to Make Tahini Caesar Dressing
Classic Caesar dressing is made with raw egg yolk, in addition to anchovies, garlic, lemon juice, Dijon, olive oil and Parmesan. But for an easier and more interesting Caesar I decided to replace the egg yolk with creamy tahini.
If you love a classic caesar—go ahead and use egg yolk! You’ll need one yolk for this recipe.
The challenge with removing the egg yolk from this type of recipe (which basically uses the technique for making mayonnaise) is that it acts as an emulsifier. After numerous tests (and lots of tahini and olive oil), I found that tahini emulsifies less than half of the amount of oil that egg yolk can.
Science aside, the process is simple and only requires a little bit of patience. 🙂
- Mince anchovies, garlic and salt into a smooth paste.
- Whisk tahini, lemon juice and Dijon together.
- Slowly, slowly, slowly, drip then drizzle olive oil into the tahini mixture while vigorously whisking.
- Once the mixture looking like mayonnaise, thin it slightly with a dash of water, then whisk in anchovy paste and Parmesan.
How to Roast Brussels Sprouts
There are a few simple tricks to perfectly roasting Brussels sprouts. But before we get into the steps, I want to mention—it’s important to trim the outer leaves of the spouts and to trim any long ends before roasting.
Tip 1: Roast at High Heat
A high oven temperature is key for achieving deeply browned and evenly tender Brussels sprouts. Why do we want to achieve browning? Flavor. It’s as simple as that, browning adds and enhances flavor.
Tip 2: Steam the Brussels Sprouts
Sounds counter intuitive, but me out. By steaming the sprouts first, not only do we cut down on cook time, but we’re able to cook the sprouts at a high temperature (important for flavor) without them burning or becoming mushy.
The beautiful part of it all—this trick doesn’t require an extra pan or stovetop step. Instead, the steaming happens right on the baking sheet. How? We simply cover the baking sheet tightly with foil and roast the sprouts covered for half of the time.
Tip 3: Don’t Stir
Arranging the sprouts cut side down, and not stirring them throughout roasting, means they have the chance to adequately brown.
How to Make Bomb Caesar Brussels Sprouts
There are three components that hit this dish out of the park—perfect roasted Brussels sprouts, delicious Caesar dressing, and crunchy toppings.
We already covered how to roast the perfect Brussel sprout. And we talked about what goes into the delicious tahini Caesar dressing. All that’s left—the topping situation.
This side dish needs crunch. Which is why the craggy croutons are an ideal finish. As are the roasted sunflower seeds. Both add a nice crunchy texture and very little work.
Just remember to keep the oven on once you pull the sprouts out. 500-degrees might seem high for croutons, and it is, but it gets the job done quickly—5 minutes is all.
And when it comes to croutons, season, season, season. Don’t forget to give them a dash of salt and pepper before tossing them in the oven.
And if I’m feeling extra, I’ll finish the caesar-dressed roasted Brussels sprouts with Parmesan and fresh parsley.
Serving
- Pan Seared Salmon
- Perfectly Cooked Top Sirloin Steak
- Healthy Chicken Meatballs
- Mushroom Veggie Burgers
- Orange Glazed Roast Turkey
- Oven-Fried Chicken
- Roasted Pork Tenderloin
More Side Dish Recipes to Try
- Garlicky Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Quick & Essay Steamed Sautéed Broccoli
- Creamy Mashed Celery Root & Potatoes
- Easy Roasted Green Beans with Garlic & Lemon
- Miso & Za’atar Potato Salad
- Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad
- Brussels Sprouts & Butternut Squash
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Tahini-Caesar Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Description
Ingredients
Brussels Sprouts:
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved lengthwise
- Kosher Salt and black pepper
Tahini Caesar Dressing:
- 3 oil-packed anchovy fillets, chopped
- 1 large garlic clove, chopped
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons tahini, if you don’t have tahini, you can also use 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, finely grated
Breadcrumbs:
- 2 cups hearty whole-wheat bread, broken into craggy pieces
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons roasted sunflower seeds
Instructions
Brussels Sprouts
- Heat oven to 500°F with racks set in middle and lowest positions.
- Toss sprouts with 2 tablespoons oil to evenly coat; season with salt and pepper. Transfer sprouts to a baking sheet and arrange cut side down in a single layer. Tightly cover sheet with foil and roast 10 minutes on lowest rack. Remove foil from sheet and continue to roast on lowest rack 7–10 minutes more until sprouts are deep golden brown.
Tahini Caesar Dressing
- Mound anchovies, garlic, and ¾ teaspoon salt on a cutting board. Using chef’s knife, mince the anchovies, garlic and salt together until well combined. Continue to work mixture, mashing and scraping with the side of the knife, until a smooth paste forms. (Alternatively, you can use a mortar and pestle to do this or use grated garlic and anchovy paste instead.)
- Whisk tahini, lemon juice, and Dijon in a large bowl. Place the bowl on a damp kitchen towel or paper towel to hold in place.
- Start slowly dripping oil into tahini mixture while whisking constantly and vigorously. Continue, slowly adding oil and whisking vigorously, until mixture looks slightly thickened and glossy. Continue to gradually add oil in a slow, steady stream until all oil has been added and mixture looks like mayonnaise.
- Add a dash of water and whisk, adjusting with more water as needed, until dressing is the consistency of heavy cream. Add anchovy mixture and Parmesan and whisk until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer cooked Brussels sprouts to bowl with dressing and toss to coat.
Breadcrumbs
- For the breadcrumbs, toss bread pieces with 1 tablespoon oil and season with salt and pepper; arrange in a single layer on sheet pan. Roast on the middle rack until golden brown and crunchy, about 5 minutes.
Assembly
- Transfer dressed Brussels sprouts to a serving platter and top with breadcrumbs and sunflower seeds.
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Notes
Nutrition
This salad was delish! I kept the Brussels raw and shredded them, making for a nice crunchy salad. Dressing was sooo good, and I loved the addition of the homemade croutons and seeds. I’ll definitely make again.
Love the idea of shredding the Brussels sprouts, I will have to try that soon!