Jim Dixon wrote about food for WW for more than 20 years, but these days most of his time is spent at his olive oil-focused specialty food business Wellspent Market. Jim’s always loved to eat, and he encourages his customers to cook by sending them recipes every week through his newsletter. We’re happy to have him back creating some special dishes just for WW readers.

I might be wrong, but it seemed like there was a food writing rule in the olden days that every recipe for Brussels sprouts had to include an anecdote about a certain generation of cooks who boiled them into a gray mess that stank of sulfur. Like many hard-to-kill-but-usually-wrong food tropes, this one lingered long after Dutch seed companies bred the bitterness out of the tiny cabbages once scientist Hans van Doorn determined which chemical compounds caused that pungent flavor in the 1990s.

Boiling them too long is probably still a bad idea, though. They’re even pretty good raw, like in this salad. Shaving them into thin shreds and letting them sit so the dressing can soften them up renders them delicious. Make sure your knife is sharp, then cut the sprouts in half from top to bottom. Lay each half cut-side down, then slice them crosswise as thinly as possible.

I like Bosc pears for salads since even when they’re hard they’re still sweet. A red-skinned Bartlett or d’Anjou can add a nice splash of color, but just be aware that they get softer when they ripen.

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad With Pear and Pecorino

1 pound fresh Brussels sprouts, halved and very thinly sliced

1 pear, preferably a Bosc

2-3 ounces pecorino cheese

2 tablespoons wine vinegar

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher-style sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cut the pear into quarters lengthwise, remove the core, and slice each quarter in half lengthwise again. Slice each eighth crosswise into thin, bit-sized pieces.

Use a swivel peeler or sharp knife to cut the pecorino into thin shavings, or grate it.

Combine the sprouts, pear, cheese, vinegar, oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Let sit for an hour or more before serving if possible.