Make a side the star of your Thanksgiving table with this Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole. Everyone will eat it, even non-Brussels sprouts fans.
For more ideas to make this the best holiday, check out all of our Thanksgiving posts.
Brussels sprouts have a poor reputation. It’s that one vegetable that you said you hated as a kid, even if you never had it. Somehow, universally, kids knew to say “eww” to Brussels sprout.
That’s a real shame, though, because Brussels sprouts are amazing. Well, if they’re cooked right. Some homes fall victim to boiled, non-seasoned Brussels sprouts and those, well, they’re not great. But this Brussels Sprouts Casserole is delicious. I promise you.
Serve it to your family this Thanksgiving and you won’t have any leftovers. So, you might want to make a double batch.
Casseroles as side dishes make your life so much easier on Thanksgiving. The majority of them are simple to assemble, so you can spend time with your family rather than with your oven.
For more, check out our full list of Thanksgiving Side Dish Casserole Ideas.
Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole Recipe
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Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole Ingredients:
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts
- 1 white onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
How To Make Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 F.
Cut the stem off the Brussels sprouts, then cut them into quarters.
Quick aside if you’ve never cut Brussels sprouts before. Cut the stem off and that will create a flat surface on the bottom of the Brussels sprout. Stand it up on that surface. Cut it in half from the top to the bottom, then cut those halves in half from the top to the bottom.
Cutting a Brussels sprout this way will make uniformed pieces and will help the leaves stay on better. If you cut it down the center, you’re gonna end up with a bit of a mess.
You’ll lose some of the leaves when you’re cutting Brussels sprouts and that’s okay. Just discard those. But don’t worry about pulling any other ones off.
Bring about two inches of water to a boil. Add in the cut Brussels sprouts. Boil them for four minutes.
Drain them in a colander and then immediately pour cold water on top of them. This will shock them and will stop them from cooking. It’ll preserve their color and keep them crisper.
You can also throw a handful of ice cubes on top of them as well. (I do this while I’m prepping the rest of the casserole so I don’t have to keep the water running.)
Chop your onions and garlic.
Add the onions to a pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Cook the onions about three minutes.
Add the Brussels sprouts and cook for another three minutes.
Add the chopped garlic, half the salt, and the pepper. Stir and cook about a minute.
Add the butter and stir until the butter is melted.
Pour in the vegetable broth and heavy cream.
Add the Creole seasoning and the remaining salt. Stir and then let the ingredients simmer until most of the liquid has cooked out.
Transfer all of the ingredients into a small casserole pan.
Top with an even layer of Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 15 minutes until the Parmesan cheese starts to brown.
Let it sit about 10 minutes before serving.
Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole: Frequently Asked Questions
Don’t skip the salt when you’re making Brussels sprouts. The salt helps to remove some of the bitterness that’s associated with the vegetable.
We’ve found that salting twice (but not over-salting) is the best way to get the best flavor out of Brussels sprouts. So follow this recipe as written. Don’t skip the salt and don’t add it all at once because that’s a little easier for you.
You can use frozen Brussels sprouts in this casserole recipe. Just make sure to defrost them completely before using this recipe so you can make it as is. Plus, it’s a lot safer to cut defrosted Brussels sprouts rather than trying to cut frozen ones.
Heavy cream is delicious. It adds such a good layer of flavor to this recipe. But, it’s also the first thing to fly off the shelves at Thanksgiving. So, if you can’t find any, don’t fret.
To make a cup of heavy cream, melt 1/4 cup of butter and add it to 3/4 cup of half and half. This recipe calls for a half cup of heavy cream, so you can half that (or, just make the recipe and use half because half of 3/4 of a cup is a really awkward measurement).
You absolutely can. Follow this recipe up until the step where you put the hot ingredients in a casserole pan. Do that, don’t do the cheese, and let the ingredients cool completely. Then, cover the casserole pan and put it in the oven.
The next day, you can just top it with cheese and pop it in the oven.
Store leftovers (if there are any) in an airtight container in the fridge for three to four days.
What goes with Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole?
We make this as a Thanksgiving side dish, so the answer is turkey. Turkey goes with this Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole.
But, I get it. You’re making a casserole because casseroles are a little hands off. Once you get the ingredients in the casserole pan, you can just pop it in the oven and relax. Even easier, you can make this casserole ahead of time and just cook it on Thanksgiving afternoon.
So you might not want to be the type of person to baste, marinade, and babysit a turkey. Enter Southside Market & Barbecue. The shop, which has been around since 1882, sells fully cooked smoked turkeys. You can purchase a smoked turkey breast (which is what is featured in the photos in our post) or a whole smoked turkey.
The turkey breast is about three pounds and the whole turkey is about 10 to 12 pounds. They arrive frozen and all you need to do is defrost and heat them.
The turkey breast comes seasoned with an incredible spice blend, so you can take credit for a delicious tasting turkey without actually doing any of the seasoning. It comes whole, so you will have to slice it yourself. But it’s super tender after cooking, so it’s incredibly easy to cut with a serrated knife (you can use a meat slicer if you want, but you don’t need one).
If you wanted to make a turkey breast with your own seasoning instead, you can make our Dutch Oven Turkey Breast recipe to serve with this casserole.
How do you defrost a frozen turkey?
Let’s talk turkey for a minute. The Southside Market & Barbecue turkeys are smoked over Texas post oak wood (in Texas!) before being packaged, shipped on dry ice, and mailed to you. If you’re not cooking it right away, you can store it in your freezer for three to six months.
But — and this is a big but — you can’t just take the turkey or turkey breast out of the freezer and put it in the oven. Just like any turkey, a Southside Market & Barbecue turkey must be defrosted fully before cooking. Our turkey breast took two full days in the fridge to defrost.
But what if it’s Thanksgiving morning and you forgot to pull out the turkey. All is not lost. Fill your kitchen sink with cold water, stick the turkey (in plastic!) in the water, and you can safely defrost it that way. It’ll take about 30 minutes per pound, so if you’re defrosting a full Southside Market & Barbecue turkey this way, you’re looking at about five to six hours (the breast will be closer to 1.5 hours).
The water has to be kept about 40 F in order to defrost the chicken, so you may need to add additional cold water as it defrosts.
You absolutely should not defrost a turkey in warm or hot water or on a countertop at room temperature.
More recipes using Southside Market & Barbecue Products:
We’re big fans of Southside Market & Barbecue products (we absolutely love the Sausage Slammers). We’ve used Southside products in our Grilled Sausage Kabobs, Sausage And Egg Breakfast Quesadillas, and Sheet Pan Sausage And Peppers, so you might want to add some sausage to your order and make those recipes too.
Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole
Make a side the star of your Thanksgiving table with this Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts
- 1 white onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 F.
- Cut the stem off the Brussels sprouts, then cut them into quarters.
- Bring about two inches of water to a boil. Add in the cut Brussels sprouts. Boil them for four mintues.
- Drain them in a colander and then immediately pour cold water on top of them. This will shock them and will stop them from cooking. It’ll preserve their color and keep them crisper.
- Chop your onions and garlic.
- Add the onions to a pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Cook the onions about three minutes.
- Add the Brussels sprouts and cook for another three minutes.
- Add the chopped garlic, half the salt, and the pepper. Stir and cook about a minute.
- Add the butter and stir until the butter is melted.
- Pour in the vegetable broth and heavy cream. Add the Creole seasoning and the remaining salt. Stir and then let the ingredients simmer until most of the liquid has cooked out.
- Transfer all of the ingredients into a small casserole pan.
- Top with an even layer of Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes until the Parmesan cheese starts to brown.
- Let it sit about 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
You can throw a handful of ice cubes on top of the Brussels sprouts to cool them.
Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 158Total Fat 12gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 35mgSodium 671mgCarbohydrates 10gFiber 2gSugar 3gProtein 5g
Have you made this Vegetarian Brussels Sprouts Casserole recipe? Let us know what you thought in the comments.
amy liu dong
Tuesday 22nd of November 2022
Such an easy and delicious dish to make for everyone tonight. Seeing this makes me hungry!