Saturday, January 14, 2012

When Life Gives You Turnips

Few things are more "local" than a nearby friend offering you the bounty of her own garden.  I've eaten turnip raw (peeled and salted), oven roasted, added to mashed potatoes (oh, my children still mock me for that effort), but no experience with turnip greens.  Up till now.

So, if you, too, find yourself with a bushel of greens, here are my recommendations:

Slick a low and wide saucepan with olive oil. Add a two cloves garlic, one meaty shallot, and saute briefly, until tender.  Sprinkle in a half teaspoon of chili pepper flakes, and whisk around. Add your cleaned and chopped greens (a pound or so) and stir until covered with oil.  Cover and let simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.  Stir at your leisure.  Remove lid, add a half cup chicken stock, sprinkle with salt, and cook, covered, on low, for fifteen minutes.

You'll be glad you did.

5 comments:

  1. Just in the nick of time, before I juiced 'em.

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    Replies
    1. If not for you, Desiree, it would've been olive oil and salt.

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    2. Okay, juicing them sounds kinda brutal. First of all, they're powerfully bitter to taste, and the leaves are prickly, almost painful if you brush against them. How do you flavor/counteract that?
      How'd it turn out, Petrea?

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  2. I like the color. They must be heirloom

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    Replies
    1. What? You think I took that photo? I am spiritually incapable.
      I leave that to all you deft and adept people out there. But they did look like this.

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