Parsnips, the good and the ugly, not bad.

The ugly home grown parsnips turned into a beautiful winter soup, and the better looking ones made great roast parsnips too.

That sounds almost like a fairy tale but it was not a magic wand that transformed them, it was just a bit of time and patience. Some of the parsnips from the allotment were grown in an area that had soil we had not yet got around to improving. When they were dug up for use they looked like an alien version of a parsnip with whiskery roots sprouting out in all directions and twists and turns in the main part of the vegetable.

It was our first attempt at growing parsnips and I think the combination of an un-worked area of soil that had not had the benefit of compost on it in past years and the problematic weather that they had to struggle with gave them this unpromising look. If they had been put on sale in a shop no one would have bought them, but as we had grown them we felt compelled to use them in some way.

The surprise was that after cleaning them up and cooking them up into a thick parsnip soup, they really were worth the time spent as they made a tasty and filling meal when served with spelt bread.

The better looking parsnips from different area of the allotment were roasted and were equally tasty. However there was a greater sense of triumph in turning a vegetable that some might have discarded for the way it looked into an enjoyable meal.

By the way,  the way that I make parsnip soup it is very easy to make. I will add details soon.