The Turnip Special

4 ways with the bold brassica

At this time of year I can tend to feel some fatigue creeping in that I’ve only had the same staid few ingredients available to me since winter began. It always does me good to buy ingredients outside of my usual choices as a gentle reminder that there’s lots of life to be had in winter cooking yet. I really love using turnips in the kitchen - they have such a particular flavour that seems to me a composite of all their Brassica cousins at once.

Pickled turnip & crispy buckwheat salad

Recipe
Makes 2-3 portions

2 Tokyo turnip, or 6-8 baby turnips washed and thinly sliced into rounds
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp maple syrup, runny honey or sugar
80g buckwheat groats
250g drained cooked chickpeas
A good handful radicchio leaves, washed
A good handful lamb’s lettuce or other salad greens, washed
A good handful parsley leaves
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

For the tahini dressing:
2 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp lemon juice
Half clove garlic, finely grated
Pinch salt

1. Cover the buckwheat in plenty of cold water and allow to soak for at least 6 hours or overnight (this step improves its digestibility). Drain and rinse, then pat dry with a cloth. Place on a non-stick or baking paper lined metal baking sheet and bake at 185c / 365F fan until evenly golden and crispy, stirring from time to time. Season with salt

2. Mix together the turnips, lemon, maple and salt. Set aside to lightly pickle for at least 20 minutes or in the fridge overnight. Stir one or twice

3. Mix together the tahini dressing ingredients and stir in enough cold water to form a loose dressing

4. Mix together the drained turnips, chickpeas, salad leaves and parsley with a little olive oil and salt. Transfer to a serving plate, drizzle over the tahini dressing and scatter over the toasted buckwheat

Parmesan roast turnips & white beans

Recipe
Makes 2-3 portions

2 regular turnips peeled and cut into wedges or 4 small turnips quartered
450g drained butter beans, rinsed and patted dry with a cloth
200g cavolo nero, stripped from the stalk and roughly torn
80g grated Parmesan (plus a little to finish)
6 sprigs thyme
1 lemon
salt
olive oil

The Parmesan roast turnips in progress

1. Place the turnips in a large pan with with the thyme and plenty of cold, salted water. Bring to a simmer, cook until tender and drain

2. Preheat the oven to 200c / 390F fan

3. Mix together the drained turnips and butter beans with a good glug of olive oil and half the Parmesan. Place on a metal baking sheet and cover with the remaining cheese. Bake until golden and the beans are crispy (around 20 mins)

4. Meanwhile bring a large pan of salted water to a rolling boil, add the cavolo nero, cook for 2-3 mins, then drain and blot on a kitchen cloth or gently squeeze out any excess water (alternatively steam the cavolo nero). Dress generously with olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper

5. Muddle together the cavolo nero, beans and turnips and top with some extra Parm

Turnip, almond & apple salad

So fresh and crisp, with a lovely creamy dressing made with a base of almond butter.

Recipe
Makes 2-3 portions