Brussels Sprouts & Red Pepper Slaw and Mini Mexican Meatloaves

This evening I finally made my own version of Brussels Sprouts & Red Pepper Slaw that I modeled after some that I enjoyed at a restaurant recently that consisted of shredded brussels sprouts, thinly sliced red bell pepper and their home made slaw dressing. We actually went back there for dinner last Friday...just so I could have their Brussels Sprouts Slaw again...it's my newest obsession. I liked it because it wasn't over dressed, just enough to coat (which I prefer) and it is everything I love...it's coleslaw, BRUSSELS SPROUTS, and red bell peppers. I knew that my easy slaw dressing would be great with the sprouts and red bell peppers. All I can say is OMG...it is absolutely amazing.

I happened to have found some absolutely gorgeous tiny little brussels sprouts over the weekend. They were the size of marbles and some were a little larger. I knew they would be more tender and would make the perfect slaw. While I could have just trimmed the ends and run them through a food processor with the slicer blade; instead, I lovingly sliced each and every little sprout by hand. LOL My recreated version with my slaw dressing was amazing and I can NOT wait to have it again for lunch tomorrow! I would actually rather eat it than ice cream (true story). Next time I make it I may toss in some crumbled cooked bacon to push it over the top.

I served my slaw with quick and easy spicy little Mini Mexican Meatloaves made with only 3 ingredients. I made 2 individual mini loaves and simply mixed in fresh salsa and very spicy shredded pepper jack cheese that also had habanero peppers in it. The contrast of the moist spicy meatloaf alongside the sweet and crunchy slaw was excellent. The star of this meal was the slaw, hands down. To make sure my slaw wasn't watery, I actually washed my sprouts well the night before, drained them and stored them uncovered in a bowl in the fridge overnight to allow them to thoroughly dry out because I didn't want any excess water making my dressing watery. I snapped some photos of our meal below as well as included the Brussels Sprouts & Red Pepper Slaw recipe and the easy peasy meatloaf recipe. Enjoy!

Brussels Sprouts & Red Pepper Slaw

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced to 1/8" thickness
1/4 of a red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Heaping 1/2 cup of mayonnaise (olive oil based or home made), or to taste

1 rounded tablespoon confectioner's Swerve Sweetener, or preferred sweetener

3 tablespoons of "sugar free" bread and butter pickle juice (I used Mt. Olive brand), or to taste

2 to 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, or to taste

Few dashes of celery salt

Couple dashes of ground dry mustard

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk mayonnaise, sweetener, pickle juice, vinegar, celery salt and dry mustard together. Taste dressing and make adjustments as desired, to taste. Add brussels sprouts and red bell pepper; toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate for several hours until chilled. Toss before serving.

*Note: If desired, add crumbled bacon.

**Mini Mexican Meatloaves: Makes 2 servings. Combine 3/4 pound lean ground beef (I used ground sirloin) with 1/4 cup fresh salsa and 1/2 cup shredded cheese (pepper jack or cheddar). Divide in half and shape into 2 small loaves. Place in two 5-1/2" x 3" mini loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes or until done.