Brussels sprouts and I have quite a history together.

First of all, I've always loved them. Even when I was a kid; loved them. And when I was living on my own and could do weird living-on-your-own-with-no-one-else-to-cook-for things like eat nothing but Brussels sprouts (with about a pound of butter on them) for dinner, I (often) did.

I used to make them the way my babysitter made them when I was growing up - basically just boiling them - until I realized...hmmm, probably not the best way to do it. It leeches out flavor and waterlogs them, and besides: they end up looking a little "eh". So I started roasting them like everyone says to do...but I don't especially love roasted vegetables (or crispy Brussels sprouts).

Finally, I found my own personal Brussels sprouts Sweet Spot: steamed until half-cooked, then finished off in a sauté pan with lots and lots of salty bacon, a little lemon, and salt.

Two months after I moved into my first apartment in West Hollywood, I decided that I’d give hosting Thanksgiving myself a shot. It was just my boyfriend, my parents and me, but I was so excited.

As a housewarming gift my mom had given me a little notebook with hand-written copies of all our favorite family recipes, and I had recently started trying to expand my kitchen repertoire by copying down cool dishes I came across and trying one out whenever I got the chance.

Which means that my cherished “Family Recipe Notebook” actually contains about fifteen things that I actually make…and also lots and lots of weirdly complicated recipes that I thought looked cool when I spotted them in some magazine or another, but never actually tried making (among them: garlic crab risotto, chipotle-honey salmon burgers, and a chilled champagne-ginger-mango soup that sounds extremely fancy but that I am fairly certain would not be my jam).

This salad has been one of my go-tos for years, so much so that I always keep walnuts and dried cherries on hand (so that all I have to pick up are fresh greens and some goat cheese if I want to make it). It's savory, nutty and a little bit sweet, and goes great with pretty much everything (I served it the other day alongside Pork Tenderloin with Gorgonzola Sauce).

In a small bowl, make the dressing by whisking together 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, 1 tsp fresh lemon zest, and a sprinkling of good sea salt.

Om om om.

I mean...really.

That is a good-looking soup.