Miso-Glazed Turnips and Black Sesame Soba Noodles

For Creamy Black Sesame Dressing:

1/4 cup black sesame seeds

2 tablespoons tahini

2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari

2 tablespoons rice wine or apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1-3 tablespoons water

For Miso-Glazed Turnips:

2 teaspoon miso paste

1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinagar

2 tablespoons butter or ghee

1 bunch of baby turnips, halved, or regular medium-sized turnips, cut into bite-sized pieces

A few large handfuls of turnip greens (stems removed), spinach, chard, bok choy, or your choice of greens, chopped

1 package (3-ish servings) of soba noodles, cooked according to package instructions.

Thinly sliced spring onions and sesame seeds, for garnish

Make dressing:

Add the sesame seeds to the bowl of a food processor and grind into a paste.  Add the remaining dressing ingredients, except for water, and process for about 3 minutes or until creamy.  Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to thin, if necessary.  Taste and adjust with extra soy sauce or sweetener, if necessary.

Make turnips:

Whisk the miso, honey, and vinegar, together and set aside.

In a cast iron skillet, warm the butter or ghee and lay the turnips in it (cut-side-down, if using baby turnips).  Cook for a few minutes on medium heat, until they're just starting to brown, taking care not to burn the butter.  Toss the turnips and cook for another minute or two.

Add the miso mix to the turnips and toss for another minute (they will sizzle), until the liquid thickens and the turnips are slightly cooked (but not mushy) and nicely glazed.

Remove the turnips from the skillet, return skillet to heat, and add freshly washed and chopped greens. Some water on the greens helps with the wilting process, so it's good to wash them right before cooking.

Cover the skillet, remove from heat, and let it sit for a few minutes until the greens are wilted. Toss with any remaining miso sauce in the skillet.

Toss the soba noodles with all of the dressing and thin with a little bit of water, if necessary to get a creamy consistency.  Top with wilted greens, turnips, and garnishes.

From Honest Cooking website, recipe by Sofia Eydelman

Red Winter Minestrone with Winter Greens Pesto

For the Winter Greens Pesto (makes more than you need for soup):

Greens from 1 bunch beets

Greens from 1 bunch turnips

1 bunch kale

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 ounce parmigiano-reggiano cheese

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Make Pesto:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and set up a large bowl full of ice water.  Strip the beet greens, turnip greens, and kale from their coarse stems and wash them well.  Put each bunch, one at a time, into the boiling water, and cook until they turn bright green and fairly limp.  Use tongs to transfer immediately to the ice bath (where they can all swim together.)

Remove from the ice bath and squeeze out as much moisture as possible.  Puree the greens, olive oil, garlic, cheese, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a blender.  Taste and adjust seasoning, then reserve in the refrigerator, covered directly on the surface with plastic wrap.

For the Red Winter Minestrone:

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (divided)

1 white onion, finely diced or grated

2 roma tomatoes, or two canned tomatoes, finely chopped or grated (leave out skins if using fresh)

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 handful parsley leaves

1 pinch chili flakes

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon minced rosemary leaves

Kosher salt

1 leek, white and light green parts, cut into 1/2″ wide half-moons and well-washed

1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/8″ thick circles

1/2 pound turnips, peeled and cut into 1/3″ cubes

1/2 pound beets, peeled and cut into 1/3″ cubes

1 cup dry white wine

Handful of green beans, cut into 1″ lengths

2 cups canned or cooked white beans (cannelini or similar) – reserve canning liquid or 3 cups of the cooking liquid if you cooked them yourself

Lemon juice (optional)

In a big soup pot, heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, tomato, garlic, parsley, chili flakes, bay leaf and rosemary and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low.  Keep cooking until you’ve got a well-caramelized, somewhat uniform base (sofrito).  This will probably take at least 20-30 minutes.

Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and the leeks, carrot, turnips and beets.  Raise heat to medium-high again.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.  Add the white wine and deglaze (scrape) the bottom of the pot with your spatula to dislodge any delicious browned bits.  Cook for 2 minutes to boil off most of the alcohol.  Add the green beans, white beans, and 3 cups of the bean cooking liquid and 2 cups of water (or, failing that, 5 cups of water).  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for a few more minutes.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  It will certainly need more salt, and you might also like a squeeze of lemon juice.

Divide among heated bowls and serve with a generous dollop of the winter greens pesto, which can be stirred in.

Serves 4.

From Herbivoracious.com

Orecchiette with Caramelized Turnips, Kale, and Cracked Pepper

1 pound orecchiette
1/4 cup canola oil
3 medium turnips, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 pound Tuscan/lacinato kale, stems and center ribs removed, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Freshly cracked black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus extra for garnish

Bring 6 quarts salted water to a boil in  large pot over medium-high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes.  Drain the pasta, reserving 3/4 cup of the pasta water.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking.  Add the turnips and reduce the heat to medium.  Cook, stirring often, until the turnips are tender and golden, about 6 minutes.  

Add the kale and cook, stirring often, until the kale is very tender, about 8 minutes.  Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring often, 1 minute.  Add the reserved pasta water as needed and season with cracked pepper to taste.  Add the butter and stir gently until melted.  

Add the pasta to the kale mixture and toss until the pasta is well-coated.  Stir in the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Season with salt and additional cracked pepper to taste.

Divide the pasta into warm bowls, sprinkle with additional cheese if desired, and serve.

Serves 4.


From The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook by Tracey Medeiros

Roasted Turnip Soup with Caramelized Turnips

1 1/2 pounds turnips
1 large onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 thyme sprigs or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons olive or sunflower seed oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups milk

1 to 2 tablespoons butter
1 or 2 pinches of sugar
2 teaspoons minced tarragon

Heat the oven to 425°F. Peel the turnips, then dice two-thirds of them into roughly 1-inch pieces.  Set the remainder aside.  Simmer stored turnips in boiling salted water for 3 minutes, then drain.  Fresh turnips (those with greens) needn't be parboiled.

Toss the turnip chunks with the onion, garlic, thyme, oil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, then put them in a large baking dish in a single layer.  Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, shuffling the vegetables every 15 minutes so that they brown on all sides.  Transfer to a soup pot.  Add 1/2 cup water to the roasting pan, scrape up the caramelized juices, and pour them into the pot.

Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, add the milk and 2 cups water to the vegetables, and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer, covered, until the turnips are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.  Puree until smooth and return to the pot.  Season with salt to taste.

To finish, dice the remaining turnips into 1/2-inch cubes.  Melt the butter in a small skillet, add the turnips, sprinkle with sugar, and cook over medium heat until golden, about 15 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper and stir in most of the tarragon.  Ladle the soup into bowls, spoon the caramelized onions into each one, garnish with remaining tarragon, and serve.

Makes 6 cups - serves about 4.


From Vegetable Soups by Deborah Madison

Root Vegetable Cobbler with Chive Biscuits

Filling:
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds white-skinned potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 2/3 cups)
1 8- to 9-ounce turnip, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, or substitute parsnip
1 large carrot, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 14 1/2-ounce can vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 cup whipping cream
8 ounces fresh shiitake or cremini mushrooms, stemmed, caps diced
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Biscuit topping:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
6 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whole milk

For filling:

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until deep golden, about 7 minutes. Add next 6 ingredients and stir 1 minute. Add broth and 1 cup water; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are almost tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in cream, mushrooms, peas and chives. Season to taste with salt. Bring mixture to simmer. Mix remaining 1 tablespoon butter and flour in small bowl to blend. Stir into vegetable mixture; simmer until mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Divide vegetable mixture among six 2-cup baking dishes or one medium-sized baking dish; set aside. (Can be prepared 1 1/2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.)

For biscuit topping:

Heat oven to 425°F. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into bowl. Stir in chives. Add butter; rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add eggs and milk and stir until soft moist dough forms.

Turn dough out onto generously floured surface. Knead gently just to combine. Divide dough into 6 equal pieces; pat out each piece to a 3 1/2-inch round. Place 1 dough round atop vegetable filling in each dish (some filling will show around edges). Place dishes on large baking sheet. Bake until topping is golden and vegetable mixture is heated through, about 18 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Serves 6.

From Epicurious/ Bon Appetit, with very minor changes