Give those Turnips another try!

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post by our guest blogger Mary Beth Cotterell (also our Cary Area Manager!)

Eating locally and in season is one of the BEST ways to eat. Best why? I can think of two very healthy reasons right away:

  1. produce picked and eaten at its peak generally has more vitamins, minerals and antioxidants than foods harvested before they’re ripe and then shipped long distances
  2. locally grown foods are better for the environment: they support small and midsize local farmers, cut down on pollution from shipping and trucking food and reduce your carbon footprint
BUT sometimes eating seasonally means you are exposed to vegetables that you might not ordinarily pick up at the grocery store.  The turnip, I’m sorry to say, must be one of those because I have seen a large amount of them swapped out of your Boxes in the past few weeks!  I am also someone that wasn't a big fan of the turnip until I decided to try it again.

The Turnip has so many wonderful qualities -- it needs another chance!!


The Turnip
  • First off, the turnip is actually a member of the Cabbage Family and the greens are treasured as much as the root part.
  • Turnips are very low calorie root vegetables; contains only 28 calories per 100 g. However, they are very good source of anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins and dietary fiber.
  • Turnip greens are the storehouse of many vital nutrients; contain certain minerals and vitamins several fold more than that in the roots. The greens are very rich in antioxidants like vitamin A, vitamin C, carotenoid, xanthin, and lutein. In addition, the leafy-tops are an excellent source of vitamin K.

Caramelized Turnips


Ingredients:
3 Cups of Diced Turnips                      ¼ Cup of Chicken Broth
1 Tablespoon of Butter                       1 Tablespoon of Sugar
Directions: 
Place turnips in skillet with chicken broth over medium heat.  Simmer until broth is evaporated and the Turnips are tender, about 10 – 15 minutes.  Stir in Butter and Sugar.  Gently stir the turnips until the butter & Sugar cook into a brown, sticky coating on the turnips, about 10 minutes. Serve Hot.
It makes a great side dish!







Comments

  1. AnonymousMarch 9, 2015 at 9:25 PM

    Sounds delish. I love turnip greens but have never really tried the root veg other than the little bit of dice that ends up in with the greens. I'll have to give this a try...as soon as I sign up for the service again!

    ReplyDelete

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