Parsnips... I like them, but I only really like them roasted... or perhaps in soup? We got them in the veg bag a couple times recently so tried a couple of different roasting methods:
In the end, I think we liked the polenta version better - the process was a bit simpler, and parsnips are already sweet so adding maple syrup seems a bit overkill. So here it is:
2 kg parsnips, peeled, trimmed and cut into halves or quarters lengthways
100ml rapeseed or sunflower oil
5 tbsp polenta
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp paprika
Prepare the parsnips and put them in water if doing ahead. Heat
the oven to 220C. Blanch the parsnips in boiling water
for 4-5 mins until slightly soft. Drain, leave to steam-dry, then tip
into a large bowl. Drizzle over the oil and toss to coat all the
parsnips.
Mix
the polenta, salt, pepper and paprika,
and sprinkle over the parsnips. Toss well, then lay the parsnips out on
one large baking tray
(or two small ones), with lots of space between them. Roast for 15
mins, turn them over, then roast for another 15-25 mins until golden and
crunchy. (mine didn't take that long - perhaps the pieces were on the small side)
Roasted brussels sprouts with pomegranate molasses (a simplified version of this)
Red cabbage and sesame salad (similar to this, with coriander instead of chives and no carrot or radish)
Potato, mint and edamame salad
Tahini-lemon sauce
Zimtsterne (these take ages to make but keep very well)
S was in charge of Christmas Eve since that is the special day in Germany. We ate cheese fondue (which is apparently traditional) with broccoli, cauliflower, gnocchi, bread pieces.
We were invited to Pittsburgh for Thanksgiving with our friends M+G. We had heard so much about M's famous Pittsburgh family we just couldn't resist. G drove down - 11 hours through a blizzard. I quite like long car journeys so long as someone else is driving (and he likes driving). There was a lot of (American) football and a lot of food. A cornucopia. Sweet potatoes with marshmallows. All the stuff. The following day we saw turkeys in South Park, so I guess some of them made it.
And so, December is here. Tis the season for root vegetables and cheer. Although, soooo much to doooo. This recipe uses things we had in store - a necessary requirement when I am desperately trying to use up everything we have. Suggested here.
~ 6 medium parsnips, peeled and chopped into chunks
almond milk
1/2 cup ground almonds
1 small clove garlic, peeled
1-2 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1/3 lemon
salt+pepper
toasted flaked almonds (optional)
Put the parsnip chunks in a saucepan and cover with almond milk. Simmer until the parsnips are soft, turn off the heat, drain and let cool a bit. Transfer to a blender cup along with the ground almonds, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust. Good stuff, warm or cold. Decorate with toasted flaked almonds and use as a dip, if you like.
We got these parsnips in our CSA weeks ago, then started getting loads of greens that required immediate preparation. So the parsnips lurked accusingly in the refrigerator, while temperatures rose and I felt less and less like turning on the oven to make the soup I had earmarked them for, and we ran out of almonds and then out of garlic and I felt guiltier and guiltier about neglecting my little beige roots.
Yesterday S went to watch USA vs Portugal, and I decided to stay home and get on with some stuff, including granola (while the oven was on...) and soup.
300 g parsnip (approx 6 small ones)
1 garlic bulb (10 cloves)
1 onion
~1 tbsp olive oil
125 g / 1 cup almonds, blanched
4 cups hot water, or more to taste
1 tbsp cider vinegar
~1 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper
Heat oven to 400F / 200C. Peel parsnip, garlic and onion. Cut into smallish chunks. Put in a roasting tin and toss with olive oil. Bake for 15-20 min, until tender and lightly browned. When the vegetables are done, remove from the oven and place in a blender. Add almonds, hot water, vinegar, thyme, salt and pepper and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning and acidity.
I haven't decided yet what temperature I like best for this - it could be warm or cold, like a white gazpacho (mmm white gazpacho). Note: may be a good idea to soak the almonds overnight if your blender is not awesome - this wasn't all that smooth (although totally acceptable).
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp refined coconut oil
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 heaped tsp coriander seeds
1 heaped tsp cumin seeds
6 whole cardamom pods (seeds only)
1 heaped tsp turmeric
1 heaped tsp ground ginger
1½ lb / 700 g young parsnips, peeled, and chopped into ~1 inch dice
2 pints / 1.2 l / ~ 5 cups veg stock
salt and pepper
1 small apple
For the parsnip crisps:
1 medium to large parsnip
4-6 tbsp high heat cooking oil (used safflower)
salt
Heat the oils in a large saucepan and add the onions, cooking gently for a few min before adding the garlic and cooking a bit longer til softened. Meanwhile heat a small frying pan and dry fry the cumin, coriander and cardamom until fragrant. Tip into a mortar and grind. Add to the onions, along with the turmeric and ground ginger. Mix and cook a little longer, until fragrant. Add the parsnips and stir well, then add to the stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Simmer at as low heat as possible, uncovered, for approx 1 hour. When the hour is up, liquidise the soup, taste for seasoning, then peel and grate in the apple.
While the soup is simmering, make the parsnip crisps. Heat the oil in a frying pan until very hot (smoking). Lay the parsnip slices in and fry in batches until golden brown. Remove to a paper-lined plate, sprinkle with salt and let cool.
Notes: I quite like the idea of mixing turnip and parsnips instead of using just parsnips, as well. I am quite amazed: the apple I used for this was one of three I had left from last year's apple harvests.
Turns out S had never eaten a nut roast. So, almost as a joke, I made one for our Christmas lunch. I liked the idea of incorporating parsnips (double the Christmassiness) and when I came across this recipe I decided it was the one. I interpreted the ingredient list pretty loosely, using up various nuts etc we had lying around.
300g parsnips, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
100g walnuts
90g unsalted cashews (used mixture of cashews and almonds)
200g breadcrumbs
100g pine nuts (used mixture of slivered almonds and sunflower seeds)
~2 tsp crumbled dried rosemary
~2 tsp crumbled dried sage
~ 1/2 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper
50g cranberries (used ~2 tbsp dried sour cherries, rehydrated by soaking in ~ 2 tbsp boiling water)
1 egg (or 1 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 2.5 tbsp boiling water)
another ~1 tbsp olive oil
cranberry chutney or sauce (and a few sprigs of fresh rosemary or parsley) to serve
Heat the oven to 180C / 356F. Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the parsnips until tender. In a frying pan heat 1 tbsp olive oil, add the onion and garlic and cook until softened.
Meanwhile, pulse the walnuts and cashews in a blender until roughly chopped and then mix with the breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Add the onions, garlic, pine nuts, rosemary, sage, nutmeg, sour cherries or cranberries and seasoning to the mix. Then beat in the egg.
When the parsnips are tender, drain and mash roughly with ~1 tbsp olive oil. Add the parsnip mash to the rest of the mixture. Grease a large loaf tin (and maybe line the base*), then press the mixture into it. Bake for 50-55 min, until set.
Let cool for ten min, then turn out.
To serve, warm up some cranberry sauce with some added fresh cranberries (or use cranberry chutney), spoon it over the top of the nut roast, and decorate with cranberries and fresh herbs (I used two cranberries and a piece of parsley to make some kitschy-looking pretend holly.
This was really surprisingly good - deliciously crunchy around the edges but tender in the middle. Quite nutty and appetising, although the parsnips got a bit lost - another time I might mash them less or not at all. Definitely needed some sauce - luckily I had some cranberry chutney squirreled away, which was perfect (suddenly I see the point of all that preserving through Summer and Autumn - instant food in Winter!).
*I didn't grease or anything at all and it stuck to the base a little bit - not horrendously but a bit (I suspected it might, but thought I'd try the minimal effort route first). To avoid this, I'd definitely try greasing; potentially also lining the base.
A simple update of a Delia recipe. With the last of the Spring (ie sweetest) parsnips. The Summer (weekly) CSA has started so I felt the need to empty the fridge out before the green deluge begins...
4 medium parsnips, trimmed and scrubbed
1 large sweet potato, trimmed and scrubbed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sumac salt+pepper
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp olive oil
Heat oven to 450F. Chop the parsnips and sweet potato (leave peel on) into chunky sticks (~2 cm across / 8 cm long). Put the vegetable pieces in a bowl and toss with 1 tbsp olive oil, sumac, salt and pepper. Transfer the veg to a large baking tray (with edges). Put in the oven and roast for 30-40 min, until the vegetables are tender all the way through and lightly browned. Mix 1 tsp olive oil, maple syrup and olive oil, then distribute over the top of the roasted veg. Eat warm or cold.
We biked the course of the Boston Marathon overnight on Sunday night: took a train from South Station with 700 other bikers at 10pm, started the course around 11.30pm having biked from the train station in Southborough to the start line in Hopkinton among a vast throng of red blinking lights (lots more bikers arriving in buses and cars as well as the train). S and I lost the others quite early but we sailed all the way: it was a beautiful night: so much energy, fun, camaraderie. Finished about 1.30am, but then I was too excited and didn't really sleep - got up early and went to work in beautiful Spring sunshine. Felt off-kilter, but like the first weekend of Spring... almost Summer.
Food for lab meeting was cheesy pizza (was a last minute solution as originally ordered from the other side of the marathon route), so I couldn't eat it and went down to Brigham Circle about 3pm to get something to keep me going. I was in Green T (tea shop) waiting for a banana-coconut-pineapple smoothie as masses of sirens started speeding past. So many. Unusually many, despite being in an area full of hospitals. There was rolling news on a little TV in the shop. The headlines were about explosions at the marathon finish line. Two and two came together, and my heart clenched. The girl brought out my smoothie and we stood watching the headlines with another customer for a few minutes, exchanging words of shock and disbelief, before I ran back to work: my heart still aching; my thoughts with the people at the finish line, the people in the hospitals, with this tough little city, with all my friends who could so easily have been in the wrong place on this sunny holiday Monday.
Baking can be my way of winding down and taking my mind off things. So I made these last night, after I eventually biked home, having waited for the runners to finish passing our street and the hubbub to die down. I'd wanted to do more, different things with parsnips, the idea of making a bread occurred (thanks to Delia), then I decided to adapt it into a savoury muffin to make it quicker and more portable, then decided to try sweet ones too. Used this recipe as a base; borrowed the idea of a rye-wholemeal-cornmeal flour mix (in the savoury version) from Boston Brown Bread (I needed something Boston-related to creep in, somehow).
Savoury:
(makes 12)
1 cup wholemeal flour
1 cup rye flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp ground cumin
2-3 tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups grated parsnip
1/3 cup oil
2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 1/2 tbsp boiling water
1 1/3 cups fake milk mixed with 1 tsp cider vinegar
Heat
oven to 350F. Prepare a muffin tin. Mix flours, cornmeal, baking
powder,
bicarb, thyme, cumin, salt and pumpkin seeds in a medium bowl.
In a separate bowl mix the oil, linseed mixture, milk mixture and grated
parsnip. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. Dollop
into prepared muffin cups and then bake for ~25 min, until a skewer
comes out clean.
Sweet:
(makes 12)
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 1/4 cups wholemeal flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2/3 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup slivered toasted almonds
1 1/2 cups grated parsnip
1/3 cup oil
2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 1/2 tbsp boiling water
1 1/3 cups fake milk mixed with 1 tsp cider vinegar
Heat oven to 350F. Prepare a muffin tin. Mix flours, baking powder, bicarb, sugar, spices, salt, nuts and raisins in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl mix the oil, linseed mixture, milk mixture and grated parsnip. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. Dollop into prepared muffin cups and then bake for ~25 min, until a skewer comes out clean.
Sweet ones are good: not too sweet, nicely spiced. Think pecans or walnuts might work better than the almonds. You can't really taste the parsnip.
I love parsnips, but in all honesty I have stuck to relatively few ways of cooking them: mostly pureed (in soup or mash) or roasted (both are recommended, and delicious). Neither of those methods makes something that is as good cold the next day. The best thing for eating cold (or reheated) the next day is curry: the longer it sits, the more the flavours play together and the more interesting they become. I have roasted and souped parsnip with curry spices before, why not make a parsnip curry? S and I were talking about making curries with spice pastes recently, thought I would try something in that style. And really liked the idea of peanuts with parsnips for some reason (possibly partly alliterative).
My littlest sister has been in India these last few weeks, I think that
might have inspired this longing series of curried veg. She's in
Thailand now, perhaps Thai curry experiments will follow?
(makes quite a huge pot - prob serves 4-6)
(based on this recipe)
5 cloves garlic
2 inch piece of ginger
1 small onion
1 green chilli
75ml water + 325ml water
1/2 cup peanuts
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tsp cumin seed
2 tbsp safflower, canola or peanut oil
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 a tin of tomatoes
2 lb parsnips
2 cups chickpeas
1-2 tsp tamarind paste
1-2 tsp salt
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
Put the garlic, ginger, onion and chilli in a blender with 75ml water and blend to a paste. Grind the coriander seed and half the cumin seed. Toast the peanuts in a dry frying pan and then grind them coarsely, so there are still plenty of chunks left (or chop them).
Heat the oil in a tall saucepan. When hot, add the whole cumin seeds and toast for ~30sec, until fragrant. Add the ground spices and peanuts and stir and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the garlic-ginger paste and cook for a few minutes more, until it starts to thicken. Add the tomatoes, the rest of the water, the parsnips and the chickpeas, cover and simmer for 20-30 min, until the parsnips are tender. Add salt and tamarind, taste and add more if needed. Eat sprinkled with chopped fresh coriander, with brown rice.
This was an excellent pre / post midnight bike marathon snack. The parsnips are sweet: I know they are a love or hate thing but I am firmly in the 'love' camp, and I think they work excellently with the earthy / toasty / robust chickpeas, peanuts and curry spices. It was a treat to have such a big pile of parsnips (thanks A!).
I saw this combination somewhere, thought it sounded good.
4 small to medium parsnips, peeled and chopped into even sized pieces
2 mostly-black plantains, peeled and chopped into even-sized pieces
2 tsp ground cumin
olive oil
salt+pepper
1 tsp maple syrup
almond milk
Heat the oven to 400F. Parboil the parsnips and then toss in a baking tin with 1 tsp cumin, 1-2 tbsp olive oil and some salt and pepper. Roast for 20-30 min until browned and tender. Meanwhile boil the plantain pieces in a pan until tender (approx 20-30 min).
Take the parsnips out of the oven and let cool for 5-10 min. Drain the plantains. Put the parsnips in the pan and use a wand blender to puree them. Add the plantains and mash with a fork until as smooth as poss, then add remaining cumin and maple syrup; and almond milk, olive oil and salt+pepper until a good taste / texture is achieved.
The cumin / plantain / parsnip went really well together and tasted great, but I didn't get the texture quite right. Perhaps needed to use the blender on the plantains too?
Wanted a straightforward, easy way of doing celeriac. Celeriac goes great with garlic and thyme, so that was that. Would be good on its own, or with other herbs, though.
1 medium celeriac, peeled and chopped into 1cm dice
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp dried thyme (or fresh, if available)
salt+pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
Heat oil in a lidded saucepan. Add garlic, thyme and celeriac and toss. Cover and cook for ~25 min, or until celeriac is tender. Season to taste and cook uncovered for ~5 more minutes.
This was quite successful. We both liked it and it was nice and low maintenance.
Note: also works well with a mix of carrot and celeriac, or just carrots, or parsnips (add cumin as well as thyme).
We had a mixture of traditional and not so traditional stuff for christmas lunch. It was just me and seb so it was pretty easygoing.
For pre-snacks we had some dehydrated veg chips that had been dehydrating overnight in our new dehydrator...
Some root veg: carrot, beetroot, sweet potato. Peeled and then either sliced v thinly with peeler or slightly thicker with knife. Blanched some in the steamer and put others out raw - trying out different treatments. Also did some tomatoes, some kale and some apple and banana, just laying them out as they were.
The apple, banana and tomato probably came out best. The other stuff dried out ok but didn't taste so amazing. Think that blanching was a good move. And it would prob be good to toss the slices / kale pieces in a little oil and salt before drying.
After presents and family phone calls we went to work in the kitchen...
First up was a celeriac and apple salad - followed Yotam Ottolenghi's recipe here:
Could add a handful of chopped walnuts and a few baby leaves. Serves four to six. 120g quinoa 3 tbsp white-wine vinegar 2 tbsp caster sugar 1 tsp salt 1 red onion, peeled and sliced very thinly (used half a large one) 60ml rapeseed oil (used olive) ¼ head celeriac (250g after peeling and slicing) (used half a small one) 60ml lemon juice 2-3 granny smith apples (350g after coring and slicing) (used 2 1/2 gala) 2 tsp poppy seeds 1 red chilli, sliced thinly on an angle 15g coriander leaves, roughly chopped (didn't have any so left them out)
Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil, add the quinoa and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain into a fine sieve, run under cold water and then shake well to remove all the water. Leave to cool down.
While the quinoa is on the go, put the vinegar, sugar and salt in a medium mixing bowl and whisk to dissolve. Add the onion and, using your hands, rub the liquid into it. Add the rapeseed oil, stir and set aside to marinate.
Peel the celeriac, cut it into 3mm thick slices and then cut the slices into long, 3mm-wide strips. Place these at once in a large mixing bowl, along with the lemon juice, and stir well – this will help prevent discoloration. Quarter the apples, remove and discard the cores, and cut the fruit into matchstick-shaped pieces similar to the celeriac. Add the apple to the celeriac bowl and stir well, so it, too, gets a protective coat of lemon juice. (The apples and celeriac can also be cut using a mandolin or a food processor.)
To finish, add the onion and any juices from its bowl to the apple and celeriac mix, then stir in the cooked quinoa, poppy seeds, chilli and coriander. Taste and add extra salt, sugar or vinegar, if you need them – you're aiming for a pungent, sweet and sour flavour.
Next parsnips - did a version of Delia's mustard and maple glazed ones (from Delia Smith vegetarian collection):
1lb parsnips
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp maple syrup and 2 tsp wholegrain mustard, mixed.
Heat oven to 475F (might use a little less hot next time). Put baking tin with oil in it in to pre heat.
Top, tail and peel parsnips and chop into wedges 1-2 cm square and 4-5cm long. Try and err on the chunky side. Put in steamer and sprinkle with salt. Steam for 6min.
Take tray from oven and put over a direct heat. Add the parsnips (careful, they spit). Baste them with the hot oil, then put pepper on top and put in oven for 25min.
Coat parsnip pieces with mustard and maple mix and put back in oven for 5-10 min. Serve immediately.
Two versions of brussels sprouts - first (and best) was the roasted with maple syrup classic - did them with hazelnuts this time, though they were just as good without. The other was with chestnuts and panfried (cross 4oz chestnuts and roast at 400F for 10min and peel straightaway; peel and halve 8oz sprouts and cook in a little olive oil for 17min; add chestnuts and cook 20min; add 2tsp veg stock, 2 tsp sugar, 2tsp cider vinegar and cook 10min), but the chestnuts were hard and not good - the panfried sprouts were pretty good though - similar texture to the roasted ones.
Also had bean stuff I made yesterday, and cranberry sauce, which had gelled amazingly well and tasted wonderful (note, tasted a bit like rose - perhaps contaminated bowl - which was interesting - in future could do this on purpose) - impressed with how quick and easy yet tasty that one was.
Can't really see anything, but L-R there's celeriac salad, brussels sprouts with maple, brussels sprouts with chestnuts, parsnips, bean stuff and cranberry sauce. We had it with water as we'd run out of juice. I realised at the end that everything (except the beans) had some sweetness added to some extent - I guess I like the sweet-sour / sweet-earthy playoffs, but perhaps should have gone for a bit more variety and less sugar? The celeriac salad was really good, and a half quantity would be plenty for the two of us (which would halve the time spent slicing). The parsnips were good but a little burnt - need to make sure pieces are chunky, and I'm not sure the glaze really added anything. The bad chestnuts were a shame, and generally that dish was good but the roasted ones were similar and better (hazelnuts definitely optional). The beans didn't really fit that well (and were better warm), although I guess it was good to have something less sweet.
For pudding the main option was Christmas cake, which I decorated last night (alternatives being clementines and mince pies) - see here for recipe:
