It may not look impressive, but I’m really proud of this dish because I’m eating my long-hated enemy, brussels sprouts.

I crisped up diced pancetta in olive oil, sauteed onions, garlic, and then the brussels sprouts.  Added just a touch of chicken stock and some red pepper flakes, and tossed it all with some whole-wheat penne and some parmesan cheese.  Omnomnomnom.

I grew up in a household where my mother would put the frozen meat du jour out on the counter a couple of hours before cooking it.  The public health geek police in me shirks in horror at the thought of doing that now.  My freezer usually has a couple quality cuts of meat, especially if they’re on sale, but they’d languish there for months because I don’t plan most of my cooking to accomodate a proper thawing time.  Reduced thawing times without compromising quality and safety?  This is good news for me!

Epic crust failure. Let’s hope I can salvage this thing.