Dijon Mustard Brussels Sprouts with Green Apples and Blue Cheese, in a nutmeg cream sauce you'll want to eat with a spoon. Boil the sprouts, brown the onions and apples, stir in mustard and cream, and this side dish is ready in 30 minutes flat.
Every Thanksgiving I end up standing at the stove with a skillet of sprouts, wondering why I don't make this one more than once a year. It's sharp, sweet, creamy, and done faster than the turkey even thinks about resting.
Love Brussels Sprouts Recipes? Try Creamy Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Brussels Sprouts and Bacon Casserole next.
🥬 Dijon Mustard Brussels Sprouts Summary
- ⏱️ Done in 30 minutes, start to finish
- 🥦 Boil Brussels sprouts for 5 minutes, just until they soften
- 🧅 Cook julienned onion in a large skillet until browned and translucent
- 🍏 Add green apple slices, cook 1 minute to warm through
- 🧂 Stir in heavy cream, Dijon mustard, and a pinch of nutmeg
- 🧀 Fold sprouts into the sauce, top with blue cheese, and simmer 10 minutes
- 🎄 Serve warm as a holiday side, or the next day - it's just as good cold from the fridge
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Three flavors, one bite. Sweet green apple, sharp blue cheese, and zesty Dijon mustard shouldn't work together on paper. In this skillet, they do. The apple softens the blue cheese's bite, and the mustard ties the whole thing together.
Fast. Thirty minutes, one skillet, no oven required. That's rare for a holiday side dish that actually looks like you tried.
Make-ahead friendly. I've eaten the leftovers cold out of the fridge the next morning more than once. The flavors settle in and the sauce thickens slightly, which I don't mind at all.
Main Ingredients
Brussels sprouts. Trim and halve them, then boil for about 5 minutes until just tender. You want them soft enough to eat but not mushy - they'll finish cooking in the sauce.
Green apple. I always use Granny Smith here because their tartness holds up against the cream and doesn't turn the dish overly sweet. Slice it thin so it cooks through in about a minute.
Onion. Julienned onion cooked until browned and translucent builds the base flavor for the sauce.
Dijon mustard. This is the backbone of the dish. Use a good quality Dijon - it's doing more work here than any other single ingredient.
Blue cheese. Pick whatever blue cheese you like best. A milder one keeps the dish approachable; a stronger one pushes the flavor further.
Heavy cream and nutmeg. Cream mellows the mustard and cheese into a sauce instead of a dressing, and a pinch of nutmeg rounds out the warmth.
How to Make It
- Boil the Brussels sprouts for about 5 minutes, just until they're pleasantly soft, then drain.
- While the sprouts cook, sauté the julienned onion in a large skillet until it turns slightly browned and translucent. Add the sliced apple and cook for about a minute, just enough to warm it through without turning it to mush.
- Pour in the heavy cream, then stir in the Dijon mustard and a pinch of nutmeg right in the same skillet.
- Add the boiled Brussels sprouts and cook everything together for about 10 more minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly and coats every sprout.
- Off the heat, crumble the blue cheese over the top so it softens into the warm sauce without fully melting away. Serve right away.
Cheesy Brussels Sprouts with Apples and Onions
Equipment
- 12 inch skillet
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels Sprouts rinsed and halved
- 2 cups water for boiling Brussels Sprouts
- 1 medium onion julienned
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large Granny Smith apple peeled and chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Creamy sauce:
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 3 teaspoon whole-grain Dijon mustard
- 4 Ounces Blue Cheese
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Cut off the stem end of the Brussels sprouts and cut each in half from top to bottom. Place them in water, bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes..
- Preheat a large skillet, add olive oil. Add the onions and cook them just until they turn semi-translucent, approximately 4 minutes. Add the salt and apples and continue to cook for another minute.
- To make the sauce, add heavy cream, mustard, blue cheese and nutmeg to the same skillet with onions and apples. Stir well. Add Brussels sprouts and cook in the sauce for 10 minutes. Serve immediately.
Tips and Tricks
Don't overboil the sprouts. Five minutes is the sweet spot. Any longer and they'll turn to mush once they hit the cream sauce.
Slice the apple thin. Thick slices won't warm through in the one minute you're giving them, and you'll end up with a cold, crunchy bite in an otherwise creamy dish.
Taste before adding all the cheese. Blue cheese varies wildly in strength from brand to brand. Start with less, then add more once the sauce is done.
Reheats well. If you're making this for a holiday table, you can reheat it gently on the stove the next day. The flavors deepen overnight.
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