Warm Brussels Sprouts Kale Bacon Caesar Salad

June 2024. Memphis summer, 65 years old, and the heat wraps around Orange Mound like a wet blanket that nobody asked for but everybody wears because that is the deal you make when you live in the South. The smoker calls louder in summer — something about the heat amplifying the smoke, the way humidity amplifies everything in Memphis — and I answer, because answering is what pitmasters do.

Rosetta beside me through the week, steady as ever, the woman who runs this household with the precision of a hospital ward and the heart of a mother who has loved fiercely for 40 years of marriage.

Baked beans on the smoker — navy beans soaked overnight, simmered with onion, brown sugar, molasses, mustard, and my BBQ sauce, then smoked uncovered at 250 for two hours. The hickory settles into the sauce and transforms ordinary beans into something that belongs at any table, any gathering, any moment when people need to be fed and comforted and reminded that simple food, made with patience, is the best food there is.

Another week in the book. Another seven days of tending fires — the one in the smoker, the one in the marriage, the one in the family, the one in the church. Each fire needs something different: wood, attention, food, faith. But the tending is the same for all of them: show up, add what's needed, wait patiently, trust the process. Low and slow. Always. Low and slow.

Rosetta is the one who keeps me honest about the greens. All that smoke, all that brown sugar and molasses and hickory — she’ll let me have my week at the pit, but come Saturday she’ll set something next to those beans that’s alive and bright and warm in a different way. This salad is hers as much as mine now: Brussels sprouts and kale crisped up in a pan with good bacon, tossed in a Caesar dressing that cuts right through the richness of a long BBQ week. Forty years of marriage teaches you that balance is the whole point — low and slow on the smoker, and then something green and honest to bring it all back to center.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
4 cups curly kale, stems removed, leaves torn
6 strips thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup Caesar dressing (store-bought or homemade)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup seasoned croutons
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions

Cook the bacon. In a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon pieces until crispy, about 6–8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate, reserving 1 tablespoon of the drippings in the pan.
Sear the Brussels sprouts. Add olive oil to the pan with the reserved drippings over medium-high heat. Place Brussels sprouts cut-side down in a single layer. Cook undisturbed for 4–5 minutes until deeply golden on the cut face. Season with salt and pepper, then toss and cook another 3 minutes until just tender.
Wilt the kale. Add the torn kale directly to the pan with the Brussels sprouts. Toss continuously over medium heat for 2–3 minutes until the kale softens and begins to wilt but still holds some texture. Remove the pan from heat.
Dress the salad. Drizzle Caesar dressing and lemon juice over the warm vegetables in the pan. Toss well to coat evenly, letting the residual heat work the dressing into the greens.
Finish and serve. Transfer to a serving platter or individual bowls. Top with crispy bacon, freshly grated Parmesan, and croutons. Serve immediately while warm.

Nutrition (per serving)

Warm Brussels Sprouts Kale Bacon Caesar Salad — When the Smoke Settles, Something Green Finds Its Place