{"id":13928,"date":"2026-05-04T05:09:54","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T05:09:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/13928\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T05:09:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T05:09:54","slug":"apple-and-brussels-sprout-salad-with-warm-prosciutto-vinaigrette-garden-gun-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/13928\/","title":{"rendered":"Apple and Brussels Sprout Salad with Warm Prosciutto Vinaigrette \u2013 Garden & Gun"},"content":{"rendered":"

Great dishes have great genetics. One recipe inspires another, and then along comes a cook who takes the dish in an entirely new and delicious direction. That\u2019s the story behind Jeffrey Compton\u2019s warm prosciutto dressing, which he uses to elevate crispy Brussels sprouts at Armour House<\/a> in Birmingham, Alabama, a brasserie in a historic downtown building where he has been the executive chef since it opened last fall.<\/p>\n

The idea started when he was contemplating a way to update baby spinach salad with warm bacon dressing, which anyone who ate at a restaurant in the 1980s remembers. Take the concept back a generation further and you\u2019ll find kil\u2019t lettuce, the classic and thrifty Appalachian preparation that wilts greens in a hot dressing of bacon fat and vinegar.<\/p>\n

With those two dishes for inspiration, Compton decided to sub prosciutto for bacon and punch up the dressing with red pepper flakes and fresh thyme. He liked it so much, he started looking for other ways to use it. \u201cIt\u2019s really just a very versatile vinaigrette that can make so many things taste great,\u201d he says. Pour it over hot boiled new potatoes for a warm potato salad, or use it to dress up butternut squash. Any roasted vegetable would benefit, he says.<\/p>\n

Compton is a fan of mise en place\u2014that is, making sure all the ingredients are ready before cooking begins. The dressing comes together easily, but he advises measuring out the components ahead of time to speed up the process. Home cooks might be surprised to see that the dressing does not emulsify in the way a traditional vinaigrette does. Not to worry. Just make sure to give it a good stir right before pouring it over the Brussels sprouts.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important for the sprouts to be well crisped. At the restaurant, Compton cooks them in the deep fryer because customers tend to like them that way, but he thinks roasting them in the oven with a little olive oil at a high temperature results in a less oily dish. He adds diced apple to the party to lighten things up with a sweet-tart contrast. You\u2019d be hard-pressed to find a better fit for a fall table.<\/p>\n

He often serves the sprouts atop a bone-in pork chop that has been pounded thin, prepared schnitzel-style, and enhanced with a squash puree. But they\u2019re stellar playing a supporting role alongside almost any type of grilled or roasted meat, or even on their own for a light lunch. \u201cIt\u2019s one of those dishes,\u201d Compton says, \u201cthat just gets along with so many other things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meet the Chef: Jeffrey Compton<\/p>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Illustration: AGATA NOWICKA<\/p>\n

Hometown: Destin, Florida<\/p>\n

Item he would grab if the kitchen were on fire: A Yeti water cup with a Whataburger logo his brother gave him. \u201cI love my brother, and I don\u2019t get to see him much.\u201d<\/p>\n

His food epiphany: A ham and cheese sandwich with a glass of orange juice he had while hiking the Camino de Santiago in Spain\u2019s Basque Country. \u201cI realized how life can be so simple, and food can be so simple and so delicious.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tips for home cooks: To make any food better, butter is key. And don\u2019t be afraid of salt. Train yourself to test the salt boundaries. \u201cSee if you can salt it to a place where it\u2019s perfect and one more grain would be too much.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Great dishes have great genetics. One recipe inspires another, and then along comes a cook who takes the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13929,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[2840,18,2841,2842,2843,2844],"class_list":{"0":"post-13928","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-brussels","8":"tag-apples","9":"tag-brussels","10":"tag-brussels-sprouts","11":"tag-food-drink","12":"tag-recipes","13":"tag-salad"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@be\/116514588290573362","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13928"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13928\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}