It’s chilly. I am in the mood for something warm and comforting. Maybe a bit traditional and certainly simple to prepare. These Roast Carrots & Parsnips fit the bill.
Because I’ll be honest. I am having a little trouble finding my SippitySup mojo lately. It’s a bit like Post Partum Depression I imagine. Not that a food blog is like a baby. Oh wait, what am I saying? That’s exactly what a food blog is like. Because in order to thrive, a blog takes constant care and feeding.
So if the blog’s gotta eat and I gotta eat, then of course I gotta feed you, my virtual eaters, too. Still. I can’t get past the lazy in the kitchen blues these days. So whatever I do it’s gotta be simple. But who says simple can’t be spectacular?
But the thing about simple foods is in order for them to succeed you need to be sure the simple method you choose is not just simply a short cut, but rather the fast lane to perfection.
Root veggies are a great example of a food that can achieve perfection in the simplest of manners.
Sometime in our past we humans were digging around in the dirt and we hit about the idea of eating roots. The world has been a better place ever since!
There are many ways to enjoy these vegetables from the underworld, but roasting is just about my favorite. Roots such as parsnips and carrots are commonly roasted because it brings out their distinctive, rustic charm, and actually amplifies their inherent richness and bolsters the sugars in these vegetables.
Wait a sec. I am assuming you know and love these veggies as much as I do. Well, I suppose it’s okay to assume you know carrots. It is probably one of the first veggies you ever ate and Gerber probably supplied them. They are sweet and delicious raw or cooked.
But parsnips may be another matter entirely. Parsnips are the strange looking “white carrot”. You have probably seen them at the store. I find parsnips to be a tricky vegetable to choose in the market. They come in many sizes. I avoid any that are more than two inches in diameter at the widest point for most preparations, as they tend to go woody. You should also avoid those that are particularly small since they are not as economical, and will require more preparation time.
I like the parsnips that are roughly carrot sized. But parsnips are never the same exact proportions as carrots. Carrots tend to have a gradual taper and parsnips go from a wide top to a narrow pointy tip quite quickly. But in the roasting method I am about to describe this is a good thing because I like a varied texture in my roasted root veggies.
Once you have narrowed your choice down by size look for parsnips that are firm with a good creamy color without spots, blemishes, cuts, or cracks (cracks indicate woodiness). They should have a good, uniform shape (about 6 to 10 inches long) and should not be limp or shriveled. Parsnips like cool temperatures and dark places. Store them in perforated plastic bags in the refrigerator and they’ll last two to four weeks. If little rootlets are still attached to the main root remove them before you store the parsnips to prevent moisture loss.
Somewhere along the line people began to peel and trim their root vegetables. This can be a good thing. But it’s not always necessary. Sometimes I like a more visual connection to the food I am eating. So when I roast carrots and parsnips I generally cut them lengthwise. Either in halves, or in quarters depending on their size. There is no need to peel the carrots, but parsnips do need to be peeled. I also leave the stem end attached and even an inch or so of greens when possible. Not only is this an attractive, rustic presentation but it leads to a wonderfully varied texture as well.
I am preparing mine with olive oil, thyme and plenty of course salt and pepper. But marjoram or almost any other herb (or a mix of herbs) is nice too. Because the star of the show here is all the sweet caramelization that happens when these veggies are roasted. I even like it when the tips of the parsnips get a bit burned. That way you have some bites that are soft and savory, and other bites with more tooth and a very defined flavor of burnt sugar! Yum.
Roast Carrots & Parsnips SERVES 4 CLICK here for a printable recipe
- 1 1/2 lb parsnips, peeled and halved or quartered, depending on size
- 2 lb carrots, halved lengthwise but left unpeeled
- 3 T extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 2 T thyme leaves
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange the carrots and parsnips in a single layer in a shallow rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle half of the oil over them, then turn them over and drizzle the rest of the oil for an even coating. Season generously with salt and pepper, then sprinkle the thyme leaves over everything.
Roast the vegetables, turning them once or twice during cooking until the edges and tips begin to get quite brown and they a very tender, about 30 minutes. Remove them from the oven and transfer them to a serving platter, with an additional sprinkling of salt, and a drizzle of olive oil (optional). Serve warm.
SERIOUS FUN FOOD
Greg Henry
SippitySup
How awesome, congratulations!! I can’t wait to check it out. I love the features that step into parts of people’s homes, like their refrigerators and closets and stuff. This should be an excellent piece.
Dear GREG — How wonderful to have such bubbles of joy float your way! Congratulations on much deserved recognition.
You make beautiful food in an inspired setting 🙂
chow! Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
PS — The fish are fab!
I’ve been ogling your kitchen for a while. I try to piece it together in my mind when i catch a glimpse. It is so beautiful! When i’m rich can I commission you to design mine?
Now I feel even more honored and grateful to have had the pleasure of meeting you and experienced your fine kitchen (and home) first hand. Thanks again for a great party.
Hey Greg! My kitchen is the “Suburban Chic” one in that feature. Happy to be in such good company and get introduced to your blog. Your kitchen is amazing! Love your appliances.
loved seeing your kitchen Greg! and those black cabinets are an inspiration — pretty darn awesome!!
As I’ve told you a dozen times, you kitchen rocks. I want a grown up vent hood.
That is what your kitchen is! I have a lovely one, too… but yours is better! I love the stained glass over the sink. Congratulations on this wonderful opportunity. What could be better, really — except — I hope YOU got a lovely little cashiers check for this!
🙂
Valerie
that’s so awesome! your kitchen is beautiful G!
greg sweetie congrats. that is just so fabulous. you have a stunning and workable kitchen. and a sink to die for.
congrats!! good for you!
Congratulations Greg. You do have a “to die for” kind of kitchen. Just that grouping of fish platters is enough to make anyone drool. Then the two refrigerators.….I could go on and on. It’s fabulous news and I’m so pleased for you.
Sam
to have this little bit of happiness flow your way right now. Lovely feature and a gorgeous kitchen. Watch out! It looks like the fish are coming after you! — S
Congrats on the Food and Wine article! After seeing your video for PFB, I was in love with your kitchen — simply amazing and a cooks dream. You must be SO happy setting foot in there everyday. I have to agree 110% with Jun. Happy Holidays!!!
Greg, what an accomplishment, you have certainly arrived my friend! Not that any of us ever doubted you would. Not only are you the consummate blogger, but you have created a kitchen worthy of one of the best food magazines in the world!
It does make such a difference when you have a place to work and do your magic that actually inspires and nurtures. You have created such a space!
All the best!
Dennis
It is so fun to get a peek inside your kitchen! Love those fish plates — beautiful. Well deserved that you got featured in Food and Wine magazine. Big congrats my friend 🙂 XO
Again congrats Greg. It was so much fun to turn around the page of the magazine and show my husband the feature and proudly announce “I follow his blog”!!!!! Kinda made me feel famous too.
Food and Wine sensed your style from the pages of Sippity Sup. Good for you Greg!!
Wow Greg, this is fabulous and a little message in an in-box that would make anyone of us proud! Stunning! Congratulations!
i’m so proud and happy for you all at the same time… you deserve all “good” that comes your way and more~ how fun is this? your home is amazing, full of style- comfortable and not overdone, so welcoming. i especially love all the personal touches that made it feel like a real home. so when am i coming over for dinner? geez i’ll even cook…with you of course.
Well DESERVED. You are a GREAT food blogger and did an amazing job with wonderful detail in your kitchen. I hope to see it in person 🙂 If I’m lucky I’ll get to be invited again.
Most bloggers have ordinary kitchens, even tiny kitchens, but yours is stunning — just like you!
Our next home is going to be custom built, can I have you come out and give me some much needed astethic advice! 😉
Congratulations on all amazing publicity, I STILL think you should of won the Foodbuzz award!!!!!
So well deserved. Your kitchen is GAWGEOUS…Can’t wait to pick up the issue!
Yes, you do have to sift through those messages to find the gems. Congratulations — I’m only sorry it wasn’t a 2 or 3 page spread so I could see more. I tweeted the online article saying “I wished I could spend the rest of my life in your kitchen”!
I saw those double refrigerators and my heart stopped beating for a good five seconds. Abso-freakin-lutely AMAZING! How do you ever leave your kitchen? I would live there, sleep there…gosh. I’ll stop now before it gets out of control. :-p
And of course, GRATZ on the fabulous news. How awesome for you! :-p
…of your kitchen I mean 🙂 And I think I might even be more excited than you are about your kitchen being featured in F & W. You go Greg!
I am so glad I got to see it up close before the crowds and buses make it too hard to get near following such publicity! I love the expression ‘serious appliances’. I long for such.
Trevor.
Wow congrats on getting into food and wine! Your kitchen is absolutely stunning!
Love your kitchen!
A feature in Food and Wine — how exciting! I said a long time ago how gorgeous your kitchen is. Your big tub sink alone makes me envious.
You have a gorgeous kitchen — totally worthy to be featured in this article! 🙂
Fun, fun, fun! You have a gorgeous kitchen!
That is just The Best, Greg! It’s not enough to have a swanky kitchen. There are plenty of people out there who have Commandment-breakingly wonderful kitchens who have not Clue 1 what to do in there except to show the caterer where he/she’ll be working that evening. How great that you can play your kitchen like a virtuoso! So happy for such deserved recognition.
beautiful kitchen!!! congratulations 🙂
How awesome it that!
My mouth dropped at those images of your kitchen! Wow…I want a kitchen like that (it’ll never happen). I’d also like a happy message similar to the one you received to be featured in a premier food magazine.…freakin’ fantastic — congratulations! I enjoyed the feature in my very own issue of F&W.
On another note, it was great to see you last week at the luncheon, Greg. Thank you for taking some group shots with my camera for me. Happy Holidays to you! Hope to see you around next year at another event. 🙂
I just received my issue in the mail and there you are!!! You will be the center piece of my dining room table for a few days! We’ll be able to say “we knew him when!”
Congrats friend!!
Oh, and totally envious of the plum stove!! To die for!!
~Kristin
Congrats! How fun and exciting! — mary the food librarian
Awesome, Greg! Congratulations!
your kitchen is amazing (and so are YOU). 😀
Well, it IS a fabulous kitchen, Greg!! My heart leaped when I saw it in your PFB video! Congrats on an awesome feature!!!
You are the best!
So SWEET, what great recognition. Draw them in with the amazing cooking, writing and recipes and then show them how to make the kitchen. Is there no end to your talents?
I totally love your kitchen! It’s cool to know I’ve been there! Congrats on the feature.
Greg, how awesome is this? I’m so happy for you! Congrats!
how much I covet your kitchen.
Congrats on the great spread!
GASP! That is awesome. Not only is your kitchen really cool but now you are famous. Ok, you are also pretty cute as well and always make me laugh. I was going to send this to your email but I knew it couldn’t match F &W’s email so I just posted it as a stupid comment.
Congrats indeed! I’ll have to pick up a copy next time I head out to the bookstore. Hey, one more excuse to go, right?
Congrats on your success with the blog and feature. First time commenting and it seems to me you’re doing an amazing job. Looking forward to reading more.
You do have a gorgeous kitchen (not that I’ve seen it in person… where’s my invite????)
CONGRATS GREG!
Congrats! Love you kitchen! We both have Thermador:) We posted about your remodel here: http://twopeasandtheirpod.com/kitchen-remodel-the-big-reveal/
Again, Congrats on being featured! Well deserved!
damn, i love that sink of yours. and the two refrigerators. and stoves/ovens. well, the island is pretty freaking fabulous too. *SIGH*
congratulations, greg!! this feature is WELL deserved!
This is better than winning PFB 🙂 Seriously!
Congrats, Greg! How exciting! I’ve already said before how much I love your kitchen but I’ll add here that I’m just a little jealous of all that great natural light coming in, too. Sadly, I don’t have that. Happy for your feature–well deserved. 🙂