If you're like me, your biggest challenge with the farm share veggies is figuring out what to do with all the root vegetables! Thus far, I have used mine in several soups, mashed potatoes, stir fries, cole slaw and a veggie dip. You have to get creative, have an open mind, and be willing to try these hearty little suckers in just about anything.
This week, I tried an unusual and new recipe out on the family that features turnips and cabbage. Of course, I thought it was a unique recipe until I asked my mom if she'd ever tried it. "Cabbage soup? Oh I used to make that all the time," she said. I sometimes forget that she lived on a farm with a huge garden growing up and was used to these types of things. "We always made ours with ham," she went on, wondering what kind of meat I put in mine. This soup features no meat, but a nice mix of lentils, barley and pinto beans. My husband loved it and Sophia and Gus eventually enjoyed it, but had to be coerced into it by the promise of brownie ice cream afterwards!
On the same evening I made the soup, I fired up the oven and roasted a whole tray of red and white turnips, plus some leeks and garlic. Wowee -- my kitchen never smelled so earthy! Then, on another night, I also tried a simple, but elegant idea to dress up green beans.
So, without further ado, here are some yummy ways to eat up those roots.
Cabbage and Root Stoup
1/2 onion (or two pearl onions if you still have some left), chopped
4 turnips, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, diced
2 tsp. olive oil
1 small head of cabbage, chopped
1 potato, chopped
6 cups of water
1 bouillon cube
1 can of soup beans --lentils, barley and pinto
4 small kale leaves, shredded
Salt and pepper to taste
More olive oil for drizzling
1 cup shredded swiss cheese
Croutons
Sautee onion in olive oil for about five minutes or until clear. Add garlic and sautee until fragrant. Add turnips, cabbage and potato, plus water and bouillon and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium low and simmer until all veggies are cooked, about 20 to 25 minutes. Add kale during last five minutes. Add water if you want a thinner consistency. Salt and pepper to taste (this will probably need a little more salt than normal due to all of the cabbage). Serve in bowls and top with swiss cheese, olive oil and croutons.
Roasted Veggie Dip
2 red turnips
2 large white turnips
2 leeks
6 fresh garlic cloves
1 to 2 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup nayonaise
Thinly slice both types of turnips. Cut leeks into small pieces. Mix all ingredients in olive oil with some generous dashes of salt and pepper. Throw on a baking sheet (line with foil for easy clean up) and bake in the oven at 375 degrees and roast for about 20 minutes, flipping everything over halfway through the baking time. Cool veggies to room temperature.
Peel roasted garlic and leeks. Then throw everything, plus the nayo, into a food processor. Puree until smooth. Chill at least an hour and serve with toasted pita chips. Very garlicly!!!
Green Beans In Goat Cheese
Add about 2 tsp. of water to about a 1/2 lb. green beans, put in covered glass dish and microwave on high for two minutes until beans are tender-crisp. Meanwhile, take a roasted garlic clove and mash it with 1/4 cup goat cheese. Add the goat cheese to warm green beans, salt and pepper to taste and stir in some slivered almonds. It's a bistro dish you can make in about 15 minutes!
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