Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Pancetta and Gorgonzola

This year, Will and I hosted Thanksgiving at our house. Thank goodness he took the pressure off of me and smoked the turkey! I was able to focus on the stuffing and side items. I wanted to make something that we don't normally have. I love brussels sprouts and had been seeing a lot of salads made with them lately, so I decided to give it a try. I did some research and found a couple of different recipes and created my own. I absolutely loved it and think you will too! 

It was salty, crunchy, sweet and savory- it had it all! I would eat this any day of the week.

Of note, I made a large batch for Thanksgiving. The recipe I will provide will be enough for about 6 servings as a side item.

Ingredients

Brussels Sprouts from Trader Joes come on a stalk!

Off the stalk

Dressing

 Sizzling pancetta

       I chopped my almonds with a hand mixer 

            

Layer in ingredients to the shaved brussels sprouts

                

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Pancetta and Gorgonzola

Ingredients
About 3 dozen Brussels Sprouts
1 cup Gorgonzola cheese
1 cup Almonds
4-6 ounces of Pancetta + grease
S + P to taste
1/2 cup of Olive Oil
2 tsp Dijon mustard
juice of 1 Orange
juice of 2 Lemons
1 large Shallot, minced

Directions

1. Place pancetta in a medium sized pan over medium heat until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Place on a paper towel to soak up excess fat and then set aside. Save about 2 tbsp of the fat from cooking the pancetta and set aside.

2. Wash the brussel sprouts with water and pay dry. Use the mandolin to shave them being sure to leave behind the "bases" or stems.

3. Chop the almonds with a hand emulsion blender (a food processor would probably be overkill) until coarsely chopped.

4. Once the pancetta has cooled, add it to the shaved brussels sprouts. In addition, layer in the almonds and gorgonzola cheese. Refrigerate.

5. For the dressing, mince the shallot and add the dijon mustard, lemon and orange juice. Slowly add in the olive oil and then the pancetta grease, whisking to form an emulsion. Season with salt and pepper (I was pretty generous). Refrigerate.

6. Toss the salad with the dressing when ready to serve.

Enjoy!


Adapted from Pinch of Yum