You’ve seen it on chicken, you’ve seen it on fish, now allow me to present for your viewing pleasure (drum roll… ) C-Dub’s BBQ Rub on Brussels sprouts?   Well folks, I’m here to tell you that it’s awesome!  But first, some history on me and the “small cabbage.”

As a kid, I ate most any food put in front of me.  There were, of course, a few exceptions.  As I recall, liver was never a favorite.  To get it down, I had to cover every square inch of it with, you guessed it… BBQ sauce!  Jello and Devlied Eggs were not favorites either.  Not so much for the taste.  It was, and still is the squishy texture of them that I don’t enjoy.   The other thing I never really cared for? Brussels Sprouts.  Bless my mother who, at 75 still moves around faster than most of the rest of us.  She would boil them a la American and serve ‘em up pretty much as God had provided them.   Yuk.

The young lady below looks like she’s feelin’ the same way I did about the B. Sprouts!

Photo Credit: Sage Mountain Farms (click photo for link)

Fortunately, many years later while on a white water rafting trip,  I was having dinner with friends at the Green Shutters restaurant in Clayton, GA and it happened.  The blessed southern cooks at that fine establishment put cream and cheddar cheese on the Brussels sprouts and, WhaBam!  I loved ‘em and have enjoyed them ever since.   Now, my favorite way to prepare Brussels sprouts is to roast them, as I find that it really brings out the sweetness in them and adds a nice nutty, caramelized flavor.   Which brings us to the C-Dub’s Rub part of the story…

C-Dub’s BBQ Rub Meets “Da Sprout”

I was prepping a side dish of roasted Brussels sprouts – where I coat them in olive oil, toss with salt and pepper, and finish them after roasting for about 20 minutes in a 425 F oven with honey (or Agave nectar) and balsamic vinegar prior to a final 5 minute cook in the oven.  At that point I said to myself… “Self!”… “You need to kick this recipe up a bit.”  So, I reached for some Roma tomatoes I’d just picked up, an entire bulb of fresh garlic, and the C-Dub’s BBQ Rub – which is presently the culinary darling of our kitchen.   As my girlfriend was partaking, I did not use the VooDoo rub, as it’s a bit too spicy for her.  Luckily, the original C-Dub’s packs plenty of flavor with just a faint warmth at the finish.

Close up shot of the C-Dub’s BBQ Rub Bottle reporting for duty!

Close up shot of the C-Dub’s BBQ Rub coating all the veggies nicely.  Get in to them there veggies, rub!

C-Dub’s to the rescue!  This is the original version, which I bought as part of a 2-pack with their VooDoo BBQ Rub.  The VooDoo rub is already nearly out – so Charles and Alli – get some more ready for me!

You can see from the picture above, that I’m far from an immaculate cook.  I pretty much drop the BOMB on any kitchen I enter.  Luckily, I’m good at KP duty.  That said, my final product is usually pretty decent, if I do say so myself.   I try to use fresh over dried when it comes to spices, garlic, onion, etc.   One exception would be frozen peas, as they stay pretty fresh tasting after thawing.

As I stated earlier, the veggies in this mix consisted of Brussels sprouts, fresh Roma tomatoes cut in half long ways, and a whole garlic bulb broken into cloves with the peels still on.  I threw all of this into a baking pan, coated with olive oil, salt, pepper, and the C-Dub’s Rub and stuck the pan onto the lowest rack of a preheated 425 F oven.   I cooked them up for 20 minutes and pulled the pan out for a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and Agave nectar.  I then put the veggies back into the oven for about 10 minutes to finish browning up.

And… here you go.  A close up PRON shot of the finished product…

Look at that caramelized goodness, baby!  This is a great addition to any meal – and it’s SO EASY!  If you are a roasted veggies fan, give C-Dub’s BBQ Rub a shot.  I think you’ll like it.  If you want some extra heat, go for the C-Dub’s V00D00 Rub.   Head on over to the C-Dub’s BBQ Rub website and get some.  You’ll love it.