Roasted Brussel Sprouts with pomegranate and sunflower seeds

It’s snowing outside and the temperature is below zero degrees. It’s not even 2 pm, yet it’s so dark you have to turn the lights on. From October to March, a lot of Swedes complain about the weather and the darkness. Like, complaining 24/7. I get so frustrated each time I hear someone complain about these things, I mean, we can’t control the weather or the seasons, and why complain about something you cannot control? Embrace the seasons for what they are, life’s so much better with a positive attitude. Yes, you might need a little extra sleep during the darker months. Listen to your body and its needs. One thing I do know is that nothing gets better with a negative attitude. 

During the winter months I love to take long walks during the hours when the sun’s up. It fills me with so much energy and the winter landscape is so beautiful I can’t even describe it with words. I shared a few photos in yesterday’s blog post if you want to see what winter looks like in Sweden. After breakfast I meditate for about 30 minutes and it helps my head to clear up and I can get ready for the day. After a day of working, K and I often snuggle up to watch a TV series of some sort (currently binge watching Game of Thrones from the beginning) or we play board games, talk or read books. No need to say I love this season. 

Another thing we’ve been doing lately is plan our Christmas dinner. Since it’s all plant-based, we focus on vegetables of all sorts. Just to name a few of the things we will be serving: savory pie with kale, Christmas beetroot salad, a huge salad with green kale and pomegranate seeds, roasted celery root, a vegan version of the Swedish Christmas dish called Janssons Frestelse (translation: Janssons temptation), vegan meatballs, and marinated tofu. And now I’m getting hungry just thinking about all this food. 

One thing that is also mandatory is roasted brussel sprouts. Social media has been flooded with recipes for roasted brussel sprouts, but I have planned for so long to share my recipe that I’ll do so anyway. We’ve been making this dish for several years and it really is super delicious. And cabbages are so rich in nutrients! If you ask me, Brussel sprouts are the best when served together with pomegranate seeds and sunflower seeds. We usually add them to our dinner salads, but for Christmas we serve them as a separate dish. You’ll find the recipe below 🙂 

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with pomegranate and sunflower seeds  

1 kg brussel sprouts 
1-2 tbsp olive oil 
Salt 
Black pepper 

Sunflower seeds
Pomegranate seeds 

Instructions 

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. 

2. Trim the ends of the sprouts and remove the yellow leaves. 

3. Cut the brussel sprouts in halves and add to a bowl. 

4. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. 

5. Roast in the middle of the oven until golden and soft, it takes about 25-30 minutes. 

6. Place the roasted brussel sprouts on a plate and sprinkle with sunflower seeds and pomegranate seeds. 

7. Serve immediately.