Oven Roasted Turnip Wedges - Rutabaga Fries

I was waiting in the check-out line of my local wholesale produce store when the lady behind me said, "Excuse me. I hope you don't mind me asking, but what are you planning on doing with all those turnips?" She pointed at the pile of six large rutabagas piled high in the front of my shopping cart.

She went on to tell me that she loved turnips and usually boiled and pureed them - sometimes with the addition of carrots. When I was a kid we called the later "Carnip" and had it for Thanksgiving when we were over at our friends' house.

I was, of course, not at all offended by her curiosity, but went on (most likely on and on) about how I cut my turnips into wedges and brush them with a good olive oil, sprinkle them with a pinch of sea salt and then roast them in the oven until they are a lovely carmelized brown... and then I eat them all. I told her that they are addictive when cooked in this way and she said she was going to have to try it out.

Turnips are a vastly under-rated vegetable. If you're not buy it, just try these and be amazed. It is not just my macrobiotic deprived self that loves these either - even my meat and chocolate loving husband finds these roasted turnips to be delicious.

I've tried this technique with Macomber Turnips and White Turnips but although those varieties are great for other uses (pureed soups being a great example) they are not ideal for roasting - too high a water content so they don't carmelize properly. Rutabaga, on the other hand, is dense and drier and comes out nicely browned and slighly sweeter - the crisp, crunchy edges are the best.



Oven Roasted Turnips
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1-2 large Turnips (Rutabaga or Swedish Turnips)

extra virgin olive oil

sea salt



1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Peel and slice turnips into wedges. I cut each turnip into quarters and then each quarter into thirds. I make it a point to have pointy edges on my turnip wedges because those crisp up and brown much better than thick rectangular edges.

3. Pour 1/4 cup of olive oil into a rimmed baking sheet or glass baking dish or pie plate and spread evenly. You can do this with much less olive oil, but lots of oil ensures even browning. Lay out turnip slices in a single layer and brush top and sides with olive oil. Sprinkle with a pinch or two of sea salt.

4. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove turnips from oven and turn each wedge over. Turn oven down to 350 and place turnips back into the oven. Bake another 20-30 minutes until both sides are browned and the turnip slice is soft when pierced with a fork. If a few of your wedges are thicker, remove the thinner and fully cooked slices to a plate and let the thicker slices cook on in the oven until they are soft.

5. Eat them right away or you can also save them and reheat them in small batches - about 15 minutes in a toaster oven. I think they are even better the next day, reheated.