Mustard-and-Maple Roasted Root Veggies

Ahh... root veggies. My Mom's garden provides almost more of these goodies than we can eat, but I'm not one to pass up free food, so my vegetable bin is stuffed.

Consequently, I'm always on the lookout for different ways to use parsnips, turnips, beets, onions and/or carrots in recipes that my kids will like. No easy feat, but sometimes I hit on something that works.
This combination, oddly enough, has turned out to be a favorite. I say "oddly enough" because I am not a mustard fan and rarely use it in recipes. Apparently my kids like it though. Who knew.

**Even though I'm not a mustard fan it is a good flavor contrast here, to the sweet maple syrup and veggies. AND if you really don't like mustard, just leave it out, it's really good without too.

Oven Roasted Maple Veggies

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1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp Dijon mustard ** (See note above)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 cup coarsely chopped onion or 20 pearl onions, peeled
5 cups coarsely chopped or sliced veggies of your choice; turnips, parsnips, rutabaga, carrot, potato, yams, beets and/or golden beets.

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Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss veggies and onions with the olive oil, salt and pepper on a baking pan.
Roast in oven for 20 minutes, then remove and re-toss on baking sheet.
Cook 15 minutes more. Toss again.
Cook another 15 min. Combine maple syrup, Dijon mustard and garlic powder in a small bowl.
Drizzle the maple mixture over potatoes and veggies and mix to coat well. Cook again until veggies (beets and potatoes will take the longest) are soft and glaze starts to caramelize and brown a bit.
Serve and enjoy!

Mashed Potatoes, Parsnips, Turnips and Kale

Mmmm, today is definitely a "comfort food" sorta day. Cool, misty Pacific Northwest Autumn weather and a lazy weekend with no big tasks looming...

Here's my warm and cozy lunch, another "veganized" Paula Deen recipe.

Yes, this is ALL I had for lunch. Call the carb police, I really don't care, I have enough leftovers for them too!. Not something I make that often, (who can make Paula's recipe's THAT often, really!?!) and usually I do NOT like parsnips, but I have an abundance of them to use right now and cooked this way, how can you not LOVE LOVE this combo of veggies!

Smashed Potato, Parsnip and Turnips with a little Kale

8 cups quartered yellow potatoes (I don't peel them, you can if you want)
4 cups chopped and peeled parsnip
1 turnip, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoons salt
1/2 cup chopped kale (you could use more but that's all I had)
1 (8-ounce) package Tofutti cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. Earth Balance
Freshly ground black pepper

In a large pot, combine potatoes, parsnips, turnip, onion, kale and salt; add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 18 to 20 minutes or until tender. Drain well. Add Tofutti cream cheese, Earth Balance and a dash of pepper. Mash together, taste and add more salt if you think it needs it, and serve hot.

These keep in the oven (or a crock pot) nicely while other parts of your meal are being assembled and you can snip some fresh chives or parsley on top right before serving if you want it all fancy.

Yum.

Borscht (Pressure-Cooker or Not)

Record snowfall last month, record flooding this last week, it's been one of "those" winters and we've barely started!!

All the crazy weather puts me in the mood for soup. Well, pretty much ANYTHING puts me in the mood for soup.
One of my favorites growing up, was the delicious borscht my German-Russian Grandma would make. Smelling it cooking even now takes me back to her steam-filled kitchen with the soup-pot bubbling away on a rainy afternoon, munching on Pfeffernuesse and listening carefully to her heavily German-accented cooking tips. She never used a recipe.

Life seems to fly by a lot faster now, than 40 years ago when I sat in her kitchen. I wish I had time to stand and watch my soup simmer for hours. Fortunately I discovered that Grandma's Borscht translates very well to either a pressure cooker or crock-pot with nearly similar results.

For this particular recipe, I much prefer the pressure cooker as the veggies cook up beautifully but don't disintegrate. If you haven't discovered the wonders of this cooking machine, I implore you to read up on the benefits and see for yourself. I won't spend hours trying to convince you that modern pressure cookers are nothing like exploding vintage models, I could quote facts and show diagrams but I think it's all about what you're comfortable with. If it isn't something you see yourself ever using, then stick with a crock pot or the stove. But they are great time-saving devices. Huge. And the best part? My Grandma's Borscht takes about twenty minutes! I think she would be baffled by the need for speed but would approve of the authenticity of the final product.

Even if you think you're not a beet fan, you need to try borscht just once, you may be surprised at the subtle blend of flavors and what a wonderful, and healthy winter soup this is. No canned beets though. That would be so wrong. And don't worry about an exact measurement of each veggie, or using ones you don't care for - as long as you have around the total amount.

**If your veggies are organic, go ahead and leave the peelings on and scrub well. They soften up nicely in the pressure cooker.
If you want to do this in a crock-pot, peel the veggies first, chop in more uniform, smaller pieces and cook on low for about 5+ hours until done

Miller Family Borscht

(Pressure Cooker Edition)

2 Tbsp margarine
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 (28 oz. ) can chopped tomatoes
1 lb. small beets, scrubbed well, and sliced in 1/4 in. slices
1 lb. cabbage, coarsely shredded or chopped
3 large carrots, well-scrubbed, cut in 3 or 4 chunks
2 small parsnips, well-scrubbed, cut in 3 or 4 chunks
1 largish turnip or rutabaga, cut in chunks about the same size as the carrots and parsnips
Coarsely chopped chard, kale or beet tops, about 2 cups, packed.
6 cups vegetarian "beef" flavoured stock
3 bay leaves
2 tsp. caraway seeds
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
optional garnish:
vegan sour cream
sauerkraut

Heat margarine in pressure cooker. Saute onion about three minutes, until soft. Add remaining ingredients except vinegar, sauerkraut and sour cream.

(I'm going to assume you already know how to use your particular pressure-cooker now - these are the guidelines that work with my model, but pretty standard for most types.)
Lock lid in place and bring to pressure over high heat. Adjust heat to maintain high pressure and cook for ten minutes. Quick release under cool running water. Remove bay leaves, stir in vinegar and add some salt if needed.
Garnish (optionally) with a spoonful of sour cream and/or sauerkraut and
serve.

I'll leave you with this fun picture of my daughter and her adorable hat. A family friend used the pattern from this knitter's blog and made this awesome "Brain-Monster (or Shark?)" Hat for her.
Totally perfect winter hat for a nine-year-old, don't you think??!! She's in LOVE with it.