Recipes & Food Styling

Turnip Fries with Garlic-Cilantro Aioli

Root for good health! Love turnips, but stuck on ideas for eating them? Here’s a great recipe for bringing the wonderful health benefits of this popular root vegetable into your diet.

How do tell between a turnip and a rutabaga? Both are root vegetables that are packed with nutritients and earthy flavors. Here are a few points that set them apart:

-Turnips have a gorgeous lavender tint that is more vivid and vibrant than the purplish colors of rutabagas, which have yellowish hues.

-Turnips taste a bit earthier – almost like a radish – and are not as sweet as rutabagas.

-Turnips are smaller than rutabagas.

-Turnips are one of the key ingredients in “Neeps and Tatties,” which is a cornerstone menu item in  customary “Burns Night” suppers celebrating Scottish poet Robert Burns on his birthday, January 25.

-Both are rich in earthy nutrients: Both provide potassium, fiber, magnesium, calcium, iron; and vitamins B6 and C. Rutabaga provides significantly more of vitamins B6 and C.

Here is an easy recipe for fries that can be made either of them:

Turnip Fries with Garlic-Cilantro Aioli

Makes 4 servings

Fries

2 large turnips or rutabagas, cleaned and trimmed

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon crushed multi-color peppercorns

1 pinch tumeric

1 pinch pink Himalayan sea salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut turnips into French fry-size pieces.

Place the turnips fries in a large bowl. Add olive oil, salt and pepper, and toss until all of the turnip fries are lightly covered in the oil mixture.

Place the fries on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Do not overlap the fries, and make sure to allow space between each piece.

Sprinkle the fries very lightly with the tumeric.

Bake in oven until crispy, about 40 to 45 minutes.

Cilantro Aioli

1 cup mayonaise

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped

1/2 clove garlic, minced 

1/4 teaspoon crushed multi-color peppercorns

1 pinch pink Himalayan sea salt

Juice of 1 fresh lemon

In a food processor, pulse all ingredients together until well blended, about 5 to 6 quick pulses.

Scrape aioli from food processor and place into bowl. For best flavor, store in refrigerator overnight or at least 12 hours.