Friday, December 21, 2007

Gifts

The turnips are coming in. I've steamed the greens and eaten them as a side; I've tossed them into soup; I've blanched them, chopped them finely, and tossed them with eggs, cheese, and bacon for a quiche. I'm running out of ideas for the greens.


For some reason though, the turnips themselves are inspiring: sliced into wedges, sautéed in olive oil, carmelized with a smidgin' of sugar then glazed with sherry vinegar, and finally finished with fresh crop walnuts from a friend's yard and sea salt, they're delicious.


When I come back from New Mexico after Christmas, there will be more turnips. There will the first peas just setting, second-crop sprouted broccoli, and lettuce aplenty. Those are wonderful things to look forward to, but right now, I'm just looking forward to seeing my family.

10 comments:

Sarah said...

How does your friend roast the walnuts? We have a giant tree in our back yard and every time I look at how to make them edible I get turned off by the hassle...

Christina said...

Sarah: I'm not sure. I'll ask him next time I see him, then I'll shoot you an email with whatever I discover. Have a great holiday!

winedeb said...

Ah Christina it is so great to see the gifts of your garden. What a Christmas present from Mother Nature to you for all of your hard work!
Enjoy time with your family!
Have a very Merry Christmas! Be safe on your holiday journey!

One Food Guy said...

I am so envious of all of you that can garden year round. Here in Boston the ground is snow-covered, I said goodnight to my garden months ago. Spring soon come!

Happy Holidays from One Food Guy

Christine said...

hello lady, hope you're enjoying your holidays! have fun, go crazy! you work too hard :) you deserve a good rest. haha ohhh i put up some pictures on my blog. i went on a short little vacation in korea. anyway...take care and eat lots of good food for me.

Terry at Blue Kitchen said...

Beautiful photos as always, Christina. And making turnips look pretty is no easy feat. Hope you're having a glorious time with your family.

Christina said...

Winedeb: Merry Christmas to you too! I hope you've had a relaxing and fulfilling holiday season.

One Food Guy: Other people claim other reasons for loving Southern California, but my number one reason is this: good produce year-round. Ah, but spring in Boston--that must be glorious! Happy New Year!

Typical College Graduate (aka person-who-used-to-be-my-student-who-now-teaches-me-a-lot): I've been following your recommendation to eat lots of good food, but that may have had a bit of a damage to the nine pounds (NINE POUNDS!) you helped me lose this fall. I'm dreading stepping back on the scale when I get home.

Terry B.: I am having a very nice time, thank you. I hope you've had a happy holiday as well. I don't know about you, but I'm really looking forward to celebrating New Year's. Thank goodness that the winter holidays don't all end in one fell swoop.

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year Christina! I hope its full of wonderful vegetables, happiness and health. And I can't wait for more of your writing, but that's a selfish wish ;-)

Wendy said...

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year, Christina.
The turnips are gorgeous. I love them simply mashed. :)

Christina said...

Ann: More writing coming up! I hope your New Year's celebration was the best and that this year brings you even more than what you knew to expect.

Wendy: Thank you. Have you tried growing the Gold Ball variety of turnip (also known as Orange Jelly, although it is neither orange nor jelly-like)? They're just wonderful, and I think you'd really like them.