Pickled Veggie Salad - great for summer!

[Ajani]

I made this for a baby shower this week. It's a weird list of ingredients, but it was really yummy. And it keeps in the fridge for a good week or so. Perfect to grab and go. And just a note - I am NOT a fan of Brussels sprouts normally.

1lb fresh Brussels sprouts
1 cup sugar (I'd use 3/4 cup next time)
3/4 cup vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
1/2 lb sliced mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp plus 1/4 cup oil, divided (I used grapeseed)
1 can sliced water chestnuts, drained and cut into halves or quarters
2 cans black olives, drained (or a mix of black and green olives)
2 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped (I used about a pint of halved cherry tomatoes)
1 jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1 Tbsp lemon juice

Cut an 'x' in the core of each Brussels sprout. Place in 1/2" of water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook for about 8 minutes, until tender. Drain and let cool.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan combine the sugar and vinegar (I'd add a dried chili or two at this point if I made it again). Bring to a boil and dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

In a large skillet heat 1 Tbsp of oil and saute the mushrooms, onion and garlic until just tender. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the water chestnuts, olives, tomatoes, peppers and lemon juice. Cut the sprouts into halves or quarters and add to the bowl. Pour the sugar and vinegar mixture over it all and toss with the remaining oil (not sure I added it... hmmm).

Cover and refrigerate at least overnight.

Notes - If you aren't using the olives, add salt somewhere to this. Maybe a teaspoon? And I drained it and added a generous splash of fresh vinegar before bringing it to the shower. It gave the salad a bit more kick.