Brussels Sprout and Pancetta Salad with Chili-Lime Vinaigrette

I’m on a brussels sprout kick. A couple of weeks ago I posted a very autumn-ish sprout recipe which I feel like is sooo taboo to do around here. Pacific Northwesterners like to keep things seasonal ya know. So I kinda broke the PNW foodie rules, but sometimes with food ya just gotta.

I began feeling like I needed to help the baby cabbage lookalikes have a chance at really shining in a summery type recipe. And I think I’ve got one! Check out this Brussels Sprout & Pancetta Salad with Chili-Lime Vinaigrette! It comes together with minimal effort containing 6 ingredients for the salad and 8 ingredients for the vinaigrette. And I think it has summer written all over it. ☀️

This recipe was inspired by one of my recent (kiddo-free) grocery shopping trips. When I’m kiddo-free at the grocery store my pace through the aisles tends to slow down a bit and I start analyzing what’s on the shelves and in the refrigerated display cases a little bit more. I’m always intrigued by what the grocery store has going on in their pre-made “fresh” food deli/salad refrigerated area. You know the section I’m talking about? Does it have an official name? It’s the area where you can order to-go containers of a bunch of different pre-made meal items and you can basically walk out of the store with a full dinner in hand without ever dirtying a dish. In theory, this grocery store section seems brilliant.

However…I stare at the food in that case and the food voice in my head says “you can make that…and you can make it cheaper and better…and when you make it you will know exactly what’s going into it…and it will ACTUALLY be fresh instead of just pretend fresh.” Tell me you hear that voice when you stare at that case too.

To be completely honest, the refrigerated cases with the pre-made food kind of give me the heebs because I don’t know how long ago the food was actually made and what was actually put into it. I can’t help it. I’m pretty sure it’s a result of some past childhood experiences at buffet restaurants (which we won’t get into). It’s a total control thing, I know. But I’m okay with having control over my food and what goes into it and how’s it prepared and how long it’s been sitting around… and not having people’s fingers poked into it to taste test it…anyway…moving right along…

So I saw this salad in that deli-ish area at the grocery store, and I stared at it long and hard, which I think weirded the guy out behind the counter. He probably thought I was going to poke my finger into it and taste test it, WHICH I DIDN’T DO. And no one else should do that either.

But I do do a lot of staring at the grocery store, at the food that is. (Do do? doo doo? How DO you say that?…forget it.) So if you see some lady in a Portland grocery store staring hard at that refrigerated pre-made food case, it’s probably just me analyzing the food. So just come over and say “Hi!” I’d love to meet my fellow foodie readers. But anyways, the staring part is essential because I’ve gotta figure out what’s in the salad and how I’m going to make it into something more spectacular and tasty when I get home and so much prettier looking than the pre-made salad in the case.

And here it is.

AND LET ME TELL YOU…I’m a little excited about it.

Not only did this salad end up looking prettier than that store salad but it’s tastes better because it’s fresh and I know exactly what went into it (because I’m obsessive compulsive like that). This super flavorful and FRESH salad is what I will be eating a LOT of this summer!

Here’s the breakdown…

• Fresh crunchy vegetables (think raw brussels sprouts, red cabbage, and roasted corn)
• Salty pancetta
• A little cotija cheese
• Pepitas (aka pumpkin seeds) to provide a little nutty, seed-like crunch
• Mix it all up with a home-made chili-lime vinaigrette that you’ll want to dunk your face in

There you have it! A super tasty, flavorful, fulfilling, zesty, savory, (insert any other awesome adjective), salad that will please a crowd at your next bbq or will just give you a sense of personal fulfillment that you one-upped that grocery store salad.

Happy eating friends!

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