We got the cutest, perfect little pear in our farm box this week:
Pippo couldn't wait to eat it — it was just his size!
He and I are the fruit lovers in the family, and this was a good week for us, farm box-wise. We got apples, pears, and a big bunch of grapes, plus a mini watermelon that we gobbled up all in one go, standing at/sitting on the counter while we unpacked the box.
Along with all that fruit, there were all sorts of other goodies, from mint to lettuce to spaghetti squash to broccoli. Also, a pretty little bunch of turnips.
Problem is, we still have our turnips from the last box.
I love the challenge of finding tasty ways to prepare fruits and vegetables that I wouldn't normally buy — it's one of the main reasons why I signed up for the farm box in the first place! The butternut squash that went into the pasta I showed you last week is a great example. I enjoy squash, but wouldn't ordinarily pick it up at the store because the Lt. isn't a fan.
If it comes in the box, though, I get to do my best to make it into something he'll enjoy too, and he's game to try (most) anything I cook. (And like I said, he thought that pasta was delicious!)
I have some ideas for the rest of the squash in my fridge that's waiting to be dressed up as man food. But neither of us is particularly excited about the turnips. How do you prepare them?
sibyl says
Hey, am I really the first to comment? Goodie! Well, then, I will say that turnips mashed with an equal amount of potatoes taste truly delicious. Prepare them exactly as you would regular mashed potatoes, but throw the turnips in a few minutes later, since they don't take quite as long to cook. Then mash with butter and cream (or just butter). Num!
Another way is to roast them just as you would roast any root vegetable. I'm not sure how long that would take, but if you put them on an oiled baking tray and then drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, I'm sure it would taste great.
One final way — they taste absolutely delicious in beef stew. It probably isn't cold there, so maybe you don't want beef stew yet. But anyway, turnips plus those little pearl onions and a few carrots, really make beef stew perfect.
Happy cooking!
sibyl says
Oh, I forgot to mention that you must peel them before using. (You knew that, but just in case you didn't.)
Jackie says
What program do you use? My sister is interested and lives near your area I believe. Thanks!
_Rosie says
Jackie, we use Abundant Harvest Organics (http://abundantharvestorganics.com/),” target=”_blank”> http://abundantharvestorganics.com/),” target=”_blank”>(http://abundantharvestorganics.com/), and would definitely recommend them.
Jackie says
Perfect – thank you!
priestswife says
Throw parsnips into any soup- but I'm going to try and make pickled Lebanese parsnips- basically, parsnips, vinegar, beet juice and salt- they are DELICIOUS!!!
Liz says
Since I was little, I have loved eating peeled turnips raw out of hand (I think Pa ate them raw in one of the early Little House books, so I of course had to try it). They are sort of like a very mild radish. I put some slices from our farm box last week into a salad, and they were very tasty.
Karen says
Me too, loved them that way.
Joy says
I put turnips in soups and stews all of the time. You can also cook carrots and turnips and then mash them together with some butter, salt, and pepper. My grandmother used to make it regularly and it was very good.
rachel says
We got turnips in our last two CSA shares as well, and I am stumped. A friend made a roasted root vegetable casserole, with roasted cubes of butternut and acorn squash and turnips and some sort of eggy-cheesy-bread crumby mixture. We might try something like that. Or turnips with a stew or pot roast like a previous commenter suggested. At least they last awhile in the fridge so I don't need to figure it out right this minute!
Lisa G. says
Just like Sibyl said. The recipe I found calls for a pound of baking potatoes and a pound of turnip, peeled and cut into big pieces and boiled together with a bay leaf in the water. Drain and throw away the bay leaf. Add 1 T. butter and 3 T. sour cream. Mash, and add salt and pepper to taste. I love this because it's only half the starch and not much dairy.
Add it to your soup, too.
Kara says
I second either roasting them or mashing them with potatoes. They're great in vegetable stews. Funny, because we can't get turnips where we're at, and I miss them…
Mrs. Meyer says
I really like Armored Turnips. A friend of mine makes them every time we visit. The spicing seems a little strange as first, but it's quite good.
Lori B says
One of our favourite parts of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners is the bowl of mashed turnip! We just peel, chop, and boil just like potatoes, then mash with lots (lots!) of butter, a touch of milk, and salt and pepper.
One of our go-to fall and winter suppers is a potato and bean bake that we often add turnip to. The recipe is here:
http://castlekitchens.blogspot.ca/2008/01/winter-…
melaniebett says
I like the idea of a farm share– I definitely liked the chance to have to be creative– but our experience was not so good. We tried it last year but were disappointed in the small amount we got for the money we put in. It was the farm's first year of offering shares and they evidently had bad management. Even though they changed management, we were wary of paying in and not getting our money's worth.
Turnips are great mashed with carrots and/or potatoes and a little butter.
Or dice them and roast them with any mixture of other root vegetables and winter squash. The other night I made roasted vegetable medley with turnips, radishes, and sweet potatoes. Tossed in olive oil, salt and minced garlic and baked at 400 until everything was getting brown on the edges and was very soft to the fork.
You can also throw them into a soup. Minestrone works with a bit of diced turnip. I often make a soup with leftover odds and ends of vegetables and leftover roast ham or chicken or some sausage.
Or I made a bisque recently with a mix of turnip, butternut, and carrot. I boiled and mashed turnips and carrots one night and accidentally put too much salt into the mash. So I sauteed some onion and then added a bit of white wine and some chicken stock, added the turnip and carrot and some leftover butternut. Once the flavors melded, I pureed it until very smooth. I finished it off with some Greek yogurt because I didn't have any sour cream.
_Rosie says
Melanie, we're pretty spoiled here with the long(/endless?) growing season. I've been very happy with the amount and variety of produce we get in our box. (That's a big reason why I signed up: I figure we live right now in the best possible place for a farm share, and should take advantage while we can!)
Thanks for all the ideas!
melaniebett says
Oh and the bisque was really marvelous.
And I adore that picture of Pippo and the pear.
Lori says
I enjoy turnips done different ways, but the only way my family will eat them happily is roasted. Actually, many less-loved veggies are improved by roasting.
seashoreknits says
Sibyl is right on.
I'm from the deep south and we LOVE our turnips. We usually boil them with potatoes and serve with dark greens (mustard and turnip greens mixed together). A skillet of cornbread and sliced onions on the side and the meal is scrumptious.
Maria says
My favorite thing to do with those white and purple turnips (not the big orange turnip/rutabagas) is out of a James Beard cookbook — peel them, cut them in bite-sized pieces, melt some butter (but I bet olive oil would work too) in a saute pan just big enough to fit them all in one layer, not too crowded, cover, and cook until tender, turning them as needed, probably takes about 10 minutes for them to steam in the butter or olive oil, then put a little salt and pepper on. Easy and delicious.
Becky says
I roast them with other root veggies and add them to pot pies. Alton brown has a to die for curry pot pie recipe. They can be a little on the strong side so you don't want to overload. They keep well- along the lines of potatoes so you don't have to be in a huge rush. You can also freeze them mashed. A lot of times I do a mashed potato top to my pot pie rather than pastry since it's so much cheaper and you could work them in there, as well.
salomeellen says
Use the turnips in any savory soup that calls for potatoes. (OK, not potato soup.) Years ago when I worked in a restaurant we used turnips in place of potatoes in our beef-vegetable soup because they held up better on the steam table. As far as I know, nobody ever noticed. And I could eat the soup and think they were potatoes even though I'd cut up the turnips — which I don't care for on their own — myself!
Mary says
I love to use turnips the same way I would potatoes and make Scalloped Turnips…peel and thinly slice them, layer them (in a 9×13 pan) with thinly sliced onion, salt and pepper, and cover with evaporated milk (I usually use two cans of milk). Cover with foil, oven at 350 degrees and bake until turnips are soft and the milk is bubbling. Uncover and brown the top. If you'd like you can add a layer of Gruyère Cheese at this point and brown it. They are spectacular. Happy eating!!
Shawna says
Good for you for joining a farmshare! There are so many rewards to seasonal eating. Two books that have helped me considerably have been: Simply in Season, and Asparagus to Zucchini. If you like cookbooks, these are great. Simple ideas to use everthing that comes from the farm year round.
I also wanted to mention that your posts about the day-to-day with Pippo just bring back such sweet memories of days gone by with my first born little guy. I can just envision standing at the counter, chatting and eating watermelon. So sweet. My little guy is now 12, and we are 5 children deep. And I just have to tell you, these special times you spend together will pay off big time down the road. My 12 year old son is still my special guy, and I still enjoy him immensly. Enjoy these moments!
Phyllis says
For potato, read turnip:
http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/12/potato-pan… http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/04/simple-pot… http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2007/10/sweet-pota…
Anne says
John and I discovered in this season that we LOVE turnips. Short of sending them cross country…try peeling, roasting in a foil pouch and mashing with butter, salt and pepper. YUM.
Emily says
Go medieval and carve one! It's hard work, though. I'd cook most of them….
Margo says
I shred them raw, unpeeled, on green salads. I will also roast them along with other root veggies and garlic. Turnip and potato gratins can be good, but our favorite way is raw.
sarah says
We love turnips in pasties – we use the jamie oliver recipe from Jamie's Great Britain cookbook and just use what fillings we have on hand.
Mave says
oooh, turnips are great!
Raw in salads is popular around here but come late summer/autumn I like to tuck them round a chicken for pot roast – just peel and chop into quarters, tuck round the chicken, add some sprigs of rosemary, a few garlic cloves (inside the chicken) a big lump of butter (over the top of the chicken) and a glass of white wine, pop the lid on and roast away. It's no use for crispy brown skin but does give amazing tender juicy meat.
Anne in NC says
Make them into jack-o-lanterns if you can't bring yourself to eat them — they're scarier than pumpkins!
http://halloweenaddict.com/2008/09/vintage-hollow…
http://www.marthastewart.com/272904/turnip-jack-o…
Anna says
Turnips: mashed is awesome, especially with some potatoes (a bit of horseradish stirred in with the butter is fabulous!). Another favorite is braised in a bit of chicken stock and butter, then wholegrain mustard stirred in at the end (a Mark Bittman idea). That bisque of Melanie's sounds scrumptious, too!
Betsy M says
Every Sunday after my Grandfather was widowed he would make a beef roast with carrots, potatoes, turnips, onions and such cooked in with the meat. He always had company over to join in the meal after Mass and I never heard anyone comment about the turnips. I believe that most people thought that they were just potatoes. That meal was always delicious.
Carrie says
My favorite way to eat turnips is super easy. I chop them up, boil them in a little water and mash them with butter, salt and pepper. So good and so simple.
Brenda says
Yay for veggies! We really do eat a nice variety of them here….there are so many tasty ways to serve them, & when you grow them yourself, or have the Farmbox treats coming regularly, well, it's just hard to surpass that for flavor. :o) Turnips are great in almost any beef/venison stew, or roasted as some of your other commenters mentioned. As for squash, my family's favorite way is a dish called Squash & Apple Bake. And at this time of year, it's not a very expensive dish to make. The recipe I use comes from my Betty Crocker book, but I have also seen it in a bed & breakfast cookbook, where the quantities were all multiplied, for serving a larger number of people. It's really tasty….butter, brown sugar, spiced with mace…not a “diet” addition to a meal by any means, but oh, so good!
Brenda