We are the in the thick of the holiday season now and stoves are hot. To help celebrate, area chefs and businesses are sharing special recipes this season, as we all begin cooking up a storm. PenBayPilot.com will post recipes and tips throughout the holidays. Enjoy!

We are the in the thick of the holiday season now and stoves are hot. To help celebrate, area chefs and businesses are sharing special recipes this season, as we all begin cooking up a storm. PenBayPilot.com will post recipes and tips throughout the holidays. Enjoy!

Brian Hill is the chef/owner of Francine Bistro at 35 Chestnut Street in Camden. He is sharing a simple, yet very elegant salad from his restaurant.

“It’s a great starter for winter meals,” said Hill. “ It goes very well with say a heavy beef stew or other winter fare. We only serve it after the first couple of frosts."

The salad is surprisingly light and fresh. The dressing mellows out the Brussels Sprouts and the ingredients blend together amazingly well to form a single taste sensation. You won’t be able to stop after one bite and your guests will rain kudos down on you for an entertaining, sensational salad.

”It just tastes fancy,” in Hill’s words.

Brussels Sprouts Salad

You will need:

5 Brussels sprouts (uncooked)
1/3 cup Cheese Curd (available at Maine State Cheese)
1 Pickled egg (Francine’s pickles theirs in beet juice, but they are also available at Morse’s Sauerkraut)
1/2 cup Bread Crumbs (toasted in butter, garlic and herbs)
Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing (Recipe follows)

With a Mandolin slicer or coarse grader shred the Brussels sprouts into paper thin slices. The outer leaves work as your handle when slicing. Slice about ¾ of the sprouts, discarding any remains. It’s important and a secret to the salad’s success that the slices be paper thin.

Place the sliced sprouts in a mixing bowl adding 2 Tbs. of the Vinaigrette Dressing and a good splash of Vietnamese Fish Sauce (a crushed anchovy will work in place of the fish sauce).  

Add the 1/3 cup of cheese, cubed, and mix well. It is important that you mix the ingredients thoroughly. The Brussels sprouts being uncooked need the heavy dressing to cook them chemically. You can prepare this part of the salad about a half hour ahead of time and let it sit in the refrigerator. This will give it time to “get happy,” in Brian’s words.

Place the salad on a serving plate and top with 1 Tbs. of the toasted bread crumbs. Give it a generous grind of coarse black pepper. Garnish with pickled egg wedges.

Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing:

Combine one lemon, juiced and zested, with 1 Tbs. Red Wine Vinegar, ½ tsp. Rosemary, ½ tsp. Thyme, 1 small clove of garlic, smashed, a pinch of sea salt, 1 Tbs. Dijon Mustard and ½ cup Virgin Olive Oil. Whisk together and set aside.

More Holiday Cooking Tips:

• Francine Bistro: Brussels Sprouts Salad

• Darby's Restaurant: Pan Seared Pork Tenderloin Medallions with Apricot Brandy Mushroom Sauce

• Delvino's: White Chocolate Candy Cane Martini

• Fresh: Fresh Pastitsio

• Park Street Grille: Braised Duck Adobo

• Graffam Bros. Seafood Market: Lobster Mac and Cheese

• Shepherd's Pie: Roasted Mussels with Cedar Leaf; Roasted Cauliflower with Rhode Island Sauce

• Chocolate Drop Candy Shoppe: Eggnog Milkshake and Chocolate Peppermint Sundae