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Puréed Roasted Parsnips

Puréed Roasted Parsnips

The easiest way to prepare parsnips is to slice them, steam them, and dress with butter and salt. However, to get the fullest, richest flavor from the parsnips, they should be roasted. The browning caramelizes the natural sugars in the parsnips. In this recipe we first roast the parsnips with some butter, then purée them with added water. It's quite simple, but if you've never had parsnips this way, you're in for a treat.

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Puréed Roasted Parsnips Recipe

Ingredients

2 lbs parsnips, peeled, stringy cores removed, chopped (about 1 1/2 pounds after removing cores)
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 1/2 cup water
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

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1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Peel parsnips, make a cut off the top of the fat end of each parsnip. This will show you extent of the inner core. Often this core is stringy and woody, especially at the larger end of the parsnip. When you are prepping the parsnips, cut around this core.

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2 Place chopped parsnips in a medium sized bowl, add the melted butter and stir to coat. Lay out the parsnips on a roasting pan in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, at 400°F, until lightly golden, turning the parsnips once half-way through the cooking.

3 Put cooked parsnips into a blender or food processor. Add 1 1/2 cups water, and pulse until puréed to the desired consistency. Add more water if necessary. Add nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4.

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25 Comments

What do parsnips taste like? If you can describe it?

Posted by: Jen on January 18, 2007 3:24 PM

I love parsnips. Can't wait to try this!

Posted by: Charmin on January 18, 2007 3:27 PM

Hi Jen,
Great question, though hard to answer. Parsnips are similar to carrots; they have a natural sweetness to them. Other than that, you'll just have to try one!

Posted by: Elise on January 18, 2007 5:06 PM

Yum! I've been using parsnips in soup lately, but rarely eat them just as a vegetable. Roasting really brings out the sweetness.

Posted by: lydia on January 18, 2007 5:15 PM

Parsnips are really good, like a sweet carrot. An Irish pub we frequent serves mashed parsnips and carrots together and it's delicious. Can't wait to try this recipe. I plan to make some mashed carrots alongside.

Posted by: Lisa on January 18, 2007 5:59 PM

Thanks for the description!! :) I do like carrots...so, I'll try it! Never thought of using it in a soup either. Love your site, by the way. I've never posted a comment before...but I read all the new posts :)

Posted by: Jen on January 18, 2007 7:43 PM

Wonderful! I just bought a bag of tiny parsnips at Trader Joes the other day. I was going to puree them following a recipe I found severral years ago in "Juliet Child Entertains" where she paired creamed pureed parsnips with roast duck. Roasting the parsnips before hand sounds extra good.

Parsnips have a sweet, smoky, earthy flavor.

Posted by: Espahan on January 18, 2007 9:07 PM

I started eating parsnips again last year. They're wonderful--and pureed is my favorite way to prepare and eat them. Your picture of them is so tempting.

Posted by: sher on January 18, 2007 9:45 PM

Try adding parsnips to a simple beef stew (onions, carrots, potatoes, celery) with a beer or wine addition as part of the liquid for stewing. It's scrumptious!

Posted by: Vivian on January 18, 2007 11:01 PM

I've even got my parents eating roast parsnip, which in the case of my dad is a near miracle. They can have so much flavour.

Posted by: Trig on January 18, 2007 11:12 PM

Thanks for the simple and tasty recipe. I love to roast vegetables-- it brings out so much more flavor than boiling.

Posted by: Susan at Food "Blogga" on January 19, 2007 4:16 AM

Sounds yummy. What can I pair this with?

Posted by: Annie on January 19, 2007 4:09 PM

I am so happy to see this entry - Parsnips are an oft-neglected and underappreciated vegetable that happen to be one of my all-time faves!

Posted by: Gluten-Free By The Bay on January 19, 2007 5:00 PM

Wow.. can't wait to try this recipe. Good presentation too !!!

Posted by: Mythili on January 19, 2007 10:37 PM

I love parsnips! This is a welcome addition to my repertoir. My taste buds must be different because I find that they are less sweet than carrots with an almost gingery perfume finish to them. I personally roast them with olive oil salt and pepper along with other roots when I do a roast. Looking forward to trying this!

Posted by: Gabbi on January 22, 2007 5:49 AM

Mmmm... going to try roasting the parsnips & carrots instead of boiling next time I make "Mashed Everything" [50%Potatoes, plus sweet potato, yams, carrots, parsnips, turnips or rutabaga, all boiled separately because of cooking times, and mashed together with a little butter, white pepper, salt if needed, and whatever herb I'm in the mood for. I usually add as least one new-to-me root from the Spanish section, like yuca. Goes over great at gatherings & pot-lucks! Sometimes I omit the white potatoes and sweeten the mash.]

Posted by: Michelle on January 22, 2007 7:47 AM

I've never tried parsnips before, and I think this might be the recipe to try when I make them for the first time. Thanks for posting this one :)

Posted by: Ashley on January 22, 2007 2:03 PM

Wow, that really looks tasty and I never had it this way, in fact, did not know much what to do with them! Thanks for one more good recipe!

Posted by: Cris on January 23, 2007 3:05 PM

This sounds perfect for a house with a baby in it! What do you usually serve it with, if I may ask?

Posted by: Dineen on January 24, 2007 12:08 PM

Good idea here — for some reason parsnips fascinate me, but the only way I ever eat them is with other roasted root vegetables. Yes, they are underappreciated and it annoys me when people — like my DH — won't give them a try.

Posted by: Mimi on January 24, 2007 6:33 PM

I've never tried pureed/mashed parsnips before, it's tempting. I wonder if I could sneak this one in on the kids without them catching on? I love veggies.

I bet it would be good with a head of roasted garlic in it too.

Posted by: Michelle on January 24, 2007 10:18 PM

I made this over the weekend and it was wonderful.

Another fun addition to pureed parsnips: a pear!

Posted by: Josh on January 31, 2007 3:06 PM

This recipe sounds great...I have parsnips waiting at home. I have only ever had them roasted (with a little sprinkle of Kosher salt they are wonderful) or in soup, never mashed/pureed. This sounds worth trying. I'll bet the suggestion for mashed carrots with it would look lovely on the plate.

Posted by: Erika on February 9, 2007 1:59 PM

Do you just eat this as one would eat mashed potatoes? As a side? I shall have to try it.

Posted by: Jaspenelle Stewart on November 27, 2007 4:23 PM

Fantastic recipe!!! Tried it last night. Recently had a similar dish (paired with pan seared sea-bass, large scallop, freshwater prawn and an excellent sweet corn cream sauce) at a very exclusive restaurant. I had never had parsnips before--unbelievable is all I can say. I would put this meal as one of the best of all time (mainly due to the parsnip combo). I was able to easily reproduce the meal at home for ~ 10 dollars/plate (versus 50). I added a small amount of cream and butter to the puree to increase the richness (like the the restaurant). It is actually quite difficult to keep your hands off the roasted parsnips before pureeing due to the incredible flavor. Would also make a great dish just after roasting. Potatoes just seem blah after having parsnips.

Posted by: tony on July 19, 2008 10:16 AM

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