More on the b.sprout

I’m slowly telling family and friends that I’ve started a blog, and directing them here. And when I checked my email this morning, I found this from my friend Stasa in the U.K. -- in response to me scrunching up my nose at brussels sprouts:
One of Ed's favourite foods is brussel sprouts. And I enjoy them as well. They are actually a bit sweet, when cooked well, and maybe it also has something to do with picking baby brussel sprouts rather than older ones? Have you ever seen brussel sprouts growing? It's kind of a funny looking plant, I'd never seen one until last year when Ed showed me one growing in someone's back garden.
I’d be curious to know how Ed cooks his brussels sprouts. Stasa’s email led me to spend half my morning researching brussels sprouts on-line (it's my day off). Not a peep about it from the land of its origins. I couldn't find any mention of the brussel sprout on the website for the government of Belgium. In comparison, a search for “maple syrup” under the government of Canada website yielded 1,542 hits. Did you know brussels sprouts were the most hated vegetable by British children in 2001. The info comes courtesy of a survey on children between the ages of 11 and 16 – conducted by a supermarket chain and a group named the Cancer Research Campaign (carrots and sweetcorn were found to be the most popular). So I have good company in my dislike of the brussel sprout. The British dis on brussels sprouts says a lot, given how the veg is strongly linked to British food culture – they’re often served as part of the Christmas dinner, aren’t they? Perhaps Ed can explain.