parsnipotatoes

Parsnips taste like a cross between a carrot and a potato. They are a good source of vitamin C, vitamin E, foliate, magnesium, manganese and potassium. They are a good Lower G. I. substitute for potato.

When buying, choose parsnips that are medium in size (about 8” long), as large one can have woody cores. Parsnips should be firm and free of soft spots or withering.

The easiest way to prepare parsnips is to slice them, steam them, and dress them with butter and salt. However, to get the fullest, richest flavor from them, they should be roasted, which caramelizes their natural sugars.

In this recipe we first roast the parsnips with some butter, then purée them with potato and cauliflower. It is quite simple, but if you’ve never had parsnips this way, you’re in for a treat.

• 1 lb parsnips, peeled and cubed
• 1 lb potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 lb cauliflower, in florets (optional)
• 1 oz <butter>, melted
• 8 oz fat free cream cheese
• <salt> and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F. Peel parsnips, make a cut off the top of the fat end of each parsnip. This will show you extent of the inner core. Often this core is stringy and woody, especially at the larger end of the parsnip. Cut around this core.

Place chopped parsnips in a medium sized bowl, add the melted <butter>, and stir to coat. Lay out the parsnips on a roasting pan in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, at 400°F, until lightly golden, turning the parsnips once half-way through the cooking. Remove from oven.

Boil the vegetables until mashable, say 30 minutes, and drain. If cauliflower is included, put it in a sieve lined with paper towels, and press as much water out as possible.

Put the vegetables in a large glass bowl, and mash until smooth and uniformly mixed. Alternately, they may be puréed in a food processor.

Soften the cream cheese in the microwave and then whip it into the vegetables. Correct the seasoning.

Nuke if necessary to reheat before serving.

oven roasted potatoes

This recipe was featured in the 1988 Family Thanksgiving’s Day Feast. It is simple, uncomplicated, and very tasty. Today, I would make substitutions for the bacon drippings and salt, and, of course, as a result it would not be quite as good as it is with these ingredients. Also, I would have to limit the amount of carbs that I ate to about 15 grams.

• 6 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and halved
• ½ cup melted bacon drippings
• salt
• pepper

Peel potatoes and halve. Boil halves 10 minutes in lightly salted water. Remove from water, dry on paper toweling, and cut into quarters.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Pour drippings in a shallow roasting pan, add potatoes, turning in fat to coat. Roast uncovered, turning occasionally, about 40 minutes until tender and nut brown. Drain on paper toweling, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve.

If you want the lower-salt, lower-fat form, pre-boil the potatoes in water seasoned with ham base, replace the bacon drippings by <butter>, and salt by <salt>.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.