Weekend in Seattle, Washington

Tuesday 31 January 2012

Turnips - The Forgotten Vegetable



I think the older we get the more willing we are to try vegetables that we never used to like when we are a kid. The more willing we are to like it to seems to depend on how much information we have received on how beneficial the nutrients are for us - not something that made one bit of difference to us when we were very young.

Tonight I made a fairly regular meal in our household - pork chops which were fried with onions and garlic in olive oil at a medium hight heat for about 10 minutes and then I added some beef broth and a bit of clamato juice that I had sitting in the fridge and a bit of Johnny's Hungarian Paprika and salt and pepper. Then you let it simmer for 45 minutes to an hour on low heat. The liquid should be boiling lightly. So the picture shows our pork chop with a little of the broth and onions on top, some beets I had cooked earlier and refrigerated with a bit of red wine vinegar. I boiled two Yukon Gold potatoes  (hubby's favorite) with one turnip which I had peeled with the potato peeler and cooked for approximately 20 minutes or until a fork poked in comes out easily. Then Jack mashed the potatoes and turnips with our mixer and some butter and a bit of milk until light and fluffy. The turnips make the consistency a bit more watery so maybe next time we would add less milk before beating with the mixer. I also made some frozen corn in the microwave and served with a piece of toasted cornbread.

We love our Inno Bakery on Ridgeway in Coquitlam for the cornbread. Small world - my Dad used to own the building that the Inno Bakery started their business in. Linda is very kind and still remembers how good my Dad was too when they were starting up. She always acknowledges me with a friendly smile and asks for my Mom. If you are in this area you should check them out - so successful they have now opened another location in Port Coquitlam. They have a deli, and make their own cakes to order and have a very large variety of oils, pastas and sauces. I think they may have 25 workers employed on a weekend day. Good for them!!




Turnips are well known for their bitter flavor if not prepared correctly. When boiling your turnip, and to avoid having to change your water, place a potato or two in the water and cook right with the turnips. Then you will notice there will then be no bitter flavor. Turnips can either be peeled and quartered or chopped before cooking - or they can be cooked in their skin and then peeled (they are said to be sweeter this way). If you are baking turnips in the oven, do not peel before baking. 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.

Changing the subject - it's Superbowl weekend this weekend and I thought I'd post one of the funny commercials that will be shown during the game. Enjoy your week everybody!! Leave me a comment please and let me know if you watch the football game and if so what snacks/foods do you eat then.









Free Shipping on Long Term Food Storage

No comments:

Post a Comment