The Great Veggie Experiment Week 2, Parsnips

I know last week I told you we would be trying beets, well I bought beets, and two days later they were soft and mushy.  I took them back to the store and got parsnips instead.  While I was preparing the parsnips Little Monkey decided she wanted a taste, we both tried it raw and we really liked them.  They have a slightly sweet mild flavor and I think they would be good raw in a salad.

After perusing the web for parsnip recipes, and let me tell you there were lots of yummy looking recipes, I chose Martha Stewarts Brown Sugar Glazed Parsnips.  they were quick and easy which was what I was looking for.  We all liked them but felt they were too sweet.  I think I would try them again but add more spices and less sugar so they were not as sweet.  We like the parsnips so well I bought more so we can try another recipe this week!

Brown Sugar Glazed Parsnips

2 pounds parsnips, peeled, trimmed and quartered lengthwise

Coarse salt

1/4 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for pan

Freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place parsnips in a medium saucepan. Add enough water to cover by 1 inch, and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook until tender, about 6 minutes; drain.
2. Generously butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Arrange parsnips in pan and sprinkle with sugar. Dot with butter, and season with salt and pepper. Bake until parsnips are tender and glazed with sugar and butter, about 20 minutes.

I am excited that my veggie experiment is working so far, we loved kale and parsnips, two more veggies to add to our diets!!  Have you tried a new veggie this week?  How did you like it?

Melissa

PS. we learned a very important lesson yesterday.  If you turn your heater on and it starts to smell funny, turn it off immediately.  We did this yesterday and when Hubby got home he checked the system and found a duct that had sliped and was resting on a piece of copper tubing that was hot.  It was melting the duct which was causing a smell like car exhaust.  Needless to say we were glad there was not a fire! So the lesson here? check your ducts every once in a while! :)-