Adventures with Parsnips

 I went to Tom Thumb, in search of a new produce item that I have never tried.  I was a little sad that there weren't very many exotic fruits or vegetables I had never heard of to pick from, it was mostly just regular types of things.  I was about to go somewhere else, when I finally found something that I had never tried: parsnips.  I'd heard of parsnips, I think I've seen them mentioned in books or something, but I realized at that moment that I had absolutely no idea what a parsnip actually was.

My mom has a book called The Essential Cook Book, that is like an encyclopedia, with pictures and short descriptions of all kinds of food (and then it has recipes in the back).  I looked up parsnips, and it said that parsnips are more popular in Europe than in the United States, especially England, so that is probably why I had never had them before.  They are even traditionally part of British Christmas dinner.  They are also a cold weather crop, so are more suited to being grown in a northern climate. 

 The parsnips look like a carrot, but are whitish in color.  The bag suggests several ways of preparing them, such as honey roasted parsnips, whipped parsnips, and spiced parsnip soup.  It suggested the whipped parsnips as a "delicious alternative to mashed potatoes."  I love mashed potatoes, so I decided this sounded like a good way to try to prepare them.  It also had a link to recipes online so I went there.  I loosely followed the recipe, though I didn't use carrots, since I wanted to see what the parsnips would taste like.  I also didn't do as large of an amount as they say.  I did about 1/4 that amount.  Here is a link to the website: http://miedemaproduce.com/whipped_carrots_parsnips.html

First, I peeled the parsnips the way you would a carrot, and cut them into pieces.  I tasted one piece raw before cooking them.  It tasted a lot like a carrot, but tougher.  Then, I put them in a pot of water and boiled them, like mashed potatoes.  I could start to smell them, and they smelled kind of sweet.  It took about 18 minutes for them to get soft.  I drained them and put them in a food processor with about a tablespoon of butter and a little bit of water. 

I found I did like them better cooked than raw.  They don't quite taste like mashed potatoes, but they were pretty good.  They are actually a little bit sweet, and it kind of tasted like something in between potatoes and carrots.  My mom really liked them, and joked, "We might have to add them to our Christmas dinner.  I think parsnips are really getting short shrift."  One thing we didn't really like is that they are kind of fibrous, but weren't sure if all parsnips are like that, or just the ones we got. 

I have to say I still like regular mashed potatoes better, but these weren't bad.  Other suggestions I found online include as part of a roasted vegetable combo with potatoes and carrots, or served with pot roast, which my mom often cooks with carrots and potatoes, so those might be good ways to eat them.  I will probably most often stick with potatoes and carrots, but I enjoyed this experience of trying something new!