Tuesday, May 7, 2013

CSA Week 3



 
 
 
TURNIPS
 

Turnips are a root vegetable commonly associated with potatoes or beets, but their closest relatives are radishes and arugula, which are also members of the mustard family.
 
Turnips are available all year long, but are at their best in fall and spring, when they are small and sweet. Larger turnips necessarily develop tougher skins and a stronger flavor, but are great for mashing and or adding to soups and stews. Like most root vegetables, turnips are a great storage vegetable to use when you want to keep eating locally throughout the winter.
 
If you buy turnips with their greens attached, remove the greens when you get them home. Clean, store, and cook the greens as any cooking green. Store turnips loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in the crisper of the fridge or, if you're lucky enough to have one, loose in a root cellar. Like any root vegetable, they want a cool, dark, dry environment.
 
Contrary to conventional wisdom, turnips can be eaten raw. Baby turnips can be cut into wedges and served as crudites with dip or sliced and added to salads for a crisp, lightly zippy tang.
 
Turnips are more commonly cooked, however, and lend themselves to a variety of preparations. They are delicious roasted (a process that mellows and yet concentrates their sometimes watery flavor at the same time), mashed, baked, or added to soups or stews. The "hot" flavor associated with turnips makes them particularly well suited to mixing and matching with other root vegetables. Add a turnip or two to your favorite mashed potato recipe, for example, or to a pan of  roast vegetables.
 
This information is from about.com.
 
 
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Normally, when I cook turnips I cook turnip greens.  I then take the the turnips slice them thinly & add to the greens.  They definitely have a different taste then collards so our kids don't care for them as much.
 
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Last year, I decided to try turnip chips.  Not my favorite.  Recipes vary but it basically slices of turnips with olive oil & your choice of seasonings.  Bake at 400 degrees anywhere from 20 - 40 minutes.  I have since read that you should boil the turnips in lightly salted water and also that you should steam the excess water before placing on a baking sheet.  Not sure if any of that would have made a difference but if you try it let me know.
 
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And my ole trusty recipe.  Roasted vegetables.  When it is time to clean out the vegetables in the refrigerator I usually just toss them all in a roasting pan with olive oil & seasonings & roast at 400 degrees for about an hour.  This is one of my favorite ways to eat vegetables & it doesn't matter what you put in there it is ALL good!!

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