Swillington CSA

What shall I do with this turnip??

Here are a couple of recipe ideas for cooking the turnips in your veg share.

Hope you enjoy them.

Karen

Turnip au Gratin

1 turnip                                             

1 small teacupful milk

1 tablespoonful grated cheese            

2 tablespoons cream

1 teacupful breadcrumbs                     

Margarine

Peel turnip & cut into squares. Put in salted water & parboil 10 mins. Strain & cut into slices. Put into a greased pie dish, season to taste, dot with pieces of margarine. Pour over the milk & cream, cover  with breadcrumbs, sprinkle the cheese over all. Bake for half an hour in a hot oven.

Taken from "Farmhouse Fare", published by Farmers Weekly in 1963 & given to me by Ian's Mum!

Glazed Turnips

Serves 2

1lb younger turnips, peeled & cut into 2cm dice

salt

knob of butter

2 tablespoons sugar

Blanch turnips in boiling salted water until cooked but still slightly crisp. Drain. Melt butter in a heavy pan & put the turnips in. Sprinkle with the sugar. Fry briskly until the turnips caramelize to a golden colour. Keep stirring so as not to burn the sugar. Serve hot.

From "Food From Grem Places" by Rosamund Richardson"

Richards Nettle Soup

Richards' Nettle Soup (with thanks to Roger Phillips!)

Serves Four

1 Large Onion

1 Clove Garlic

2 Potatoes

2 gloved handfuls of nettle heads

Olive oil, salt and pepper

1 1/2 pints stock

1/4 pint single cream

1. Peel and chop onion, garlic and potatoes, and fry for 3 or 4 minutes in a large saucepan in a little olive oil.
2. Trim away stems from nettle tops using gloves and scissors, wash well, and add to the pan.
3. Add stock (using a stock cube, or home made stock), and boil fairly rapidly for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked.
4. Liquidize and return to the pan to keep hot, season with pepper and salt, por into a large serving bowl and stir in the cream.
5. Serve with croutons, if liked.

This recipe was taken from Wild Food, by Roger Phillips (Pan Books). It contains many recipes using ingredients that can be gathered from the wild, along with some superb photography.

We tried this recipe out last week, and it was delicious! It's best made with young nettle tops harvested early in the season. Hope you enjoy it too!