Friday, April 27, 2007

Leek and Parsnip Mash


One meal that comes to mind quickly when I visit NZ are lamb shanks. The second day in town, I was shopping at the local butcher shop......tons of lamb shanks, fresh and unpackaged so I could pick out the exact ones I wanted. With shanks in tow, off to the grocery. Carrots looked beautiful and also a perfect match, however, there in the bounteous buffet of veggies, I found fresh, crisp parsnips-huge ones! This was just the perfect veggie to team up with the shanks.
A little off track here, for the moment...........driving around the North Island, I didn't notice as many sheep as in previous years of visiting NZ. When you come around a curve, and there are just a few zillion on the drive towards Mangonui, you just can't believe the contrast of the sheep against the brilliant green, soft hilly mounds.......it takes your breath away! The sheep are being replaced by more cattle, more vineyards and now, the olive groves. Seems like a sensible thing to do now as the pasture land is truly fertile!
Parsnip and Leek Mash
5 large parsnips
1 Tsp.salt -or to your liking
3 Tbsp. butter
4 -5 Tbsp. of thick, fresh cream
1 Cup of thinly sliced leeks
Freshly ground pepper, to your liking
Begin by peeling the parsnips just as you would carrots. Trim the ends and chop into large pieces. Trim the leeks and slice into round pieces-use just the white part. Wash the leeks carefully....
Cook the leeks and parsnips in boiling water together until tender. Drain and transfer veggies into a processor and puree.Add the butter and the cream. You may add more cream if the mixture seems too thick. Add the salt and pepper.
Place in sauce pan and reheat then serve. The mashed parsnips are a lovely contrast against the shanks and any other fresh vegetable you might want to serve.

8 comments:

Katie said...

Those parsnips look beautiful!
I never see them here - they're considered pig food, along with pumpkin and sweet corn.
Makes you wonder, doesn't it

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

I've only made parsnips once. We don't seem to know what to do with them in the U.S., but they actually have a very nice, subtle flavor.

Anonymous said...

Sounds soothing and delicious!

Connie said...

this does sound tasty!

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

Parsnips were such a great surprize when I discovered them.
Your recipe seems a simple preparation to showcase the parsnip! Excellent.

Christine said...

I love parsnips! And you've got a lovely recipe here, Jann. It's going in my files right now.

Unknown said...

Jann, I can smell that dish! Oh, dear, so much lovely food, so little time to fix it. Elegant!

Betty Carlson said...

I just made lamb shanks for Easter and suddenly I'm reading about them everywhere! Sounds delicious and your "green" photos are stunning (I know that's another post...)