I was often asked by visitors to the Colonial garden at Colonial Williamsburg what my favorite vegetable was. My stock answer was “the one that is in season.” However, if I had to choose only one, it would certainly be cabbage. I adore cabbage whether it is in the form of slaw, sauerkraut, raw in a salad, sauteed or steamed and my favorite form of cabbage are cabbage sprouts.
Producing cabbage sprouts is an ancient practice that seems to have fallen out of favor with the modern gardener but they are relatively easy to produce and certainly worth the space and effort.
In fact, it is an excellent use of space as you are producing two crops in the same space. To produce the sprouts cut the primary cabbage, when ready, leaving plenty of stalk above the lower whirl of leaves. In four or five weeks the sprouts will have grown to the size of a large hens egg and will be ready to harvest. Select the firmest sprouts and peel away the outer leaves
I have had the best success with the early varieties of cabbage, such as Golden Cross (45 days), Parel (50 days) or Stonehead Hybrid (55 days). This provides plenty of time to grow the primary head and then produce the sprouts before the weather turns too hot.
After the sprouts are washed, cut them in half and saute until they are just caramelized. They look like large Brussel sprouts but are much, much sweeter!
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